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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'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  8. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  9. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  10. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  13. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  23. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  24. My father caught me by the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. chest — of your body
  3. chip — to eat
  4. race — humankind
  5. dip — to sink
  6. file — a document
  7. chest — a box
  8. chip — for betting
  9. chip — in a computer
  10. arm — a part of something
  11. ground — crushed
  12. dip — a sauce
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. file — a line of people
  15. race — the arms race
  16. chest — of your body
  17. ground — the earth
  18. race — a contest
  19. ground — a position
  20. dip — to dunk
  21. file — a tool
  22. calf — of the leg
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. arm — part of the body

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