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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 124 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. We're on a ________________ here.
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  4. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  5. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  6. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  12. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  13. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  16. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  17. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  18. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  19. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  24. Add some ________________ pepper to it.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — on a roll
  2. chest — of your body
  3. roll — a list
  4. ground — the earth
  5. kick — with a leg
  6. roll — a cake
  7. ground — a position
  8. cap — a lid
  9. chest — a box
  10. cap — of ice
  11. chip — to eat
  12. craft — a handicraft
  13. craft — a skill
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. chip — in a computer
  16. chip — for betting
  17. kick — in football
  18. craft — boats
  19. kick — a thrill
  20. wind — moving air
  21. wind — moving air
  22. chest — of your body
  23. cap — a hat
  24. ground — crushed

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