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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. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  2. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  3. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  4. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. He works in a ________________ mill.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  10. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  11. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  12. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  13. She's very handy with a ________________.
  14. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  18. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  19. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. The King held a masked ________________.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — to eat
  2. chip — for betting
  3. root — of a plant
  4. ball — a great time
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. game — a match
  7. saw — the tool
  8. game — wild animals
  9. saw — past of 'see'
  10. chip — in a computer
  11. track — a song
  12. track — a path
  13. saw — the tool
  14. club — for dancing
  15. club — a group
  16. root — the cause
  17. club — for golf
  18. root — of a word
  19. track — to keep track
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. ball — a round shape
  22. cold — an illness
  23. ball — a dance
  24. cold — not warm

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