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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. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  2. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  3. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  4. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  5. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  6. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  7. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  10. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  14. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  15. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  18. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  19. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  23. I can't ________________ this cold.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. stand — for spectators
  3. can — a tin
  4. can — a tin
  5. chip — for betting
  6. scale — in music
  7. face — part of the head
  8. court — of a king
  9. chip — in a computer
  10. face — to point toward
  11. chest — of your body
  12. game — a match
  13. can — to be able to
  14. face — to confront
  15. chip — to eat
  16. game — wild animals
  17. stand — on your feet
  18. scale — for weighing
  19. scale — size or range
  20. court — of law
  21. chest — a box
  22. game — a kind of play
  23. stand — to bear
  24. court — for sport

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