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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. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  2. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  18. How do you ________________ your surname?
  19. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  22. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — in a computer
  2. chip — for betting
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. last — final
  5. wake — to stop sleeping
  6. shower — rain
  7. chip — to eat
  8. spell — magic
  9. wake — a trail
  10. bass — the instrument
  11. march — the month
  12. shower — to wash
  13. march — music
  14. bass — low music
  15. last — to go on
  16. last — finally
  17. bass — the fish
  18. spell — letters
  19. spell — a short time
  20. drill — the tool
  21. drill — army training
  22. drill — a practice
  23. march — the month
  24. wake — before a funeral

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