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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. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  2. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  3. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  10. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. Did you ________________ the button?
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  16. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  20. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  21. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — for betting
  2. squash — the sport
  3. kick — with a leg
  4. last — finally
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. last — final
  7. wax — to grow
  8. squash — to crush
  9. chip — in a computer
  10. pound — to hit hard
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. press — to push
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. mine — for digging
  15. chip — to eat
  16. press — a publisher
  17. last — to go on
  18. press — newspapers
  19. kick — a thrill
  20. pound — a weight
  21. pound — for dogs
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. kick — in football
  24. squash — the vegetable

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