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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. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  4. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  5. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  6. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  7. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. What do you think of the new ________________?
  10. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  11. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  12. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  13. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  16. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  17. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  18. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  19. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  20. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  21. This piece is in a major ________________.
  22. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  23. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — in a computer
  2. mate — a friend
  3. staff — employees
  4. mate — to breed
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. staff — employees
  7. bass — the fish
  8. mate — a partner
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. stick — to attach or keep to
  11. key — the most important part
  12. chip — to eat
  13. bass — low music
  14. ground — a position
  15. key — for a lock
  16. bass — the instrument
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. chip — for betting
  19. ground — crushed
  20. staff — a stick
  21. key — in music
  22. cabinet — a cupboard
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. ground — the earth

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