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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 116 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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  12. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  13. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  14. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  22. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  23. False peace will not ________________.
  24. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — to eat
  2. last — final
  3. ground — the earth
  4. wound — an injury
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. dip — a sauce
  7. last — finally
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. ground — crushed
  11. dip — to dunk
  12. chip — in a computer
  13. rule — to rule out
  14. face — to confront
  15. wound — an injury
  16. dip — to sink
  17. chip — for betting
  18. ground — a position
  19. rule — government
  20. face — part of the head
  21. hide — animal skin
  22. face — to point toward
  23. last — to go on
  24. rule — a law

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