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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 124 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. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  5. She's very handy with a ________________.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  14. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  15. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  16. What do you think of the new ________________?
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. He works in a ________________ mill.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  23. It's one o'clock ________________.
  24. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — to eat
  2. deal — to handle
  3. field — a subject
  4. saw — past of 'see'
  5. saw — the tool
  6. field — farmland
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. deal — an agreement
  9. cell — a phone
  10. cell — in biology
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. field — for sport
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. chip — in a computer
  15. trunk — of an elephant
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. saw — the tool
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. chip — for betting
  21. sharp — clever
  22. cabinet — a cupboard
  23. sharp — exactly
  24. deal — a big deal

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