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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 120 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  3. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  7. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  8. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  13. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  14. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  20. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  23. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  24. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. pitch — a sports field
  3. dip — to dunk
  4. game — a match
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. chip — for betting
  7. lash — an eyelash
  8. dip — a sauce
  9. race — humankind
  10. race — a contest
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. lash — a whip stroke
  13. chip — to eat
  14. lash — to lash out
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. game — wild animals
  17. race — the arms race
  18. hand — help
  19. chip — in a computer
  20. dip — to sink
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. game — a kind of play
  23. pitch — completely
  24. pitch — a sales talk

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com