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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. David sat on the ________________.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  6. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  7. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  8. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  11. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  12. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  13. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  14. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  15. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  16. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  17. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  18. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  19. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  22. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. chest — of your body
  3. deal — an agreement
  4. chest — a box
  5. chip — to eat
  6. chip — for betting
  7. foot — part of the body
  8. deal — to handle
  9. file — a line of people
  10. foot — a measure
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. racket — a loud noise
  14. fall — the season
  15. chip — in a computer
  16. deal — a big deal
  17. fall — to drop
  18. foot — the bottom
  19. fall — to drop
  20. file — a tool
  21. chest — of your body
  22. swing — in golf
  23. file — a document
  24. swing — music

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