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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. That was a fun ________________.
  2. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  3. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  6. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  7. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  8. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  9. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  20. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  21. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  24. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. fork — a garden tool
  3. board — a flat piece
  4. game — wild animals
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. deal — a big deal
  8. hide — animal skin
  9. chip — for betting
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. fork — in a road
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. fork — to eat with
  14. cell — a phone
  15. chip — to eat
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. deal — an agreement
  20. board — to get on
  21. board — a committee
  22. cell — in biology
  23. chip — in a computer
  24. deal — to handle

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