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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. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  4. This piece is in a major ________________.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  12. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  15. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  18. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  19. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  22. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — for betting
  2. march — the month
  3. present — a gift
  4. key — in music
  5. cold — not warm
  6. mine — for digging
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. key — for a lock
  10. fork — in a road
  11. fork — to eat with
  12. ruler — for measuring
  13. march — the month
  14. ruler — a monarch
  15. chip — to eat
  16. cold — an illness
  17. chip — in a computer
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. fork — a garden tool
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. present — there
  22. key — the most important part
  23. march — music
  24. present — the time now

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