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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. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. That was ________________ to happen.
  6. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  7. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  8. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  11. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  12. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  13. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  14. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  17. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  18. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  19. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  22. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. We have nothing to ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — to eat
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. prune — to trim
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. bound — certain
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. dip — a sauce
  8. bound — tied together
  9. snap — to click
  10. hide — animal skin
  11. dip — to dunk
  12. chip — for betting
  13. prune — to trim
  14. ruler — a monarch
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. chip — in a computer
  18. bound — obliged
  19. prune — the fruit
  20. cold — not warm
  21. ruler — for measuring
  22. dip — to sink
  23. cold — an illness
  24. hide — to keep secret

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