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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. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  5. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  6. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  7. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  17. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  20. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  24. A ________________ is just a dried plum.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — to eat
  2. object — a thing
  3. content — the amount
  4. content — videos and posts
  5. object — to protest
  6. chip — for betting
  7. pass — a permit
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. prune — to trim
  11. prune — to trim
  12. content — happy
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. object — an aim
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. chip — in a computer
  17. pass — to succeed
  18. bat — the animal
  19. pass — to spend time
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. wind — moving air
  22. wind — moving air
  23. fan — to cool the air
  24. prune — the fruit

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