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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. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  4. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  5. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  8. It's one o'clock ________________.
  9. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  12. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  13. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  14. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  15. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  16. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  17. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. I can't ________________ this cold.
  21. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. jam — in traffic
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. pound — a weight
  4. jam — a tight spot
  5. pound — for dogs
  6. chest — of your body
  7. sharp — with an edge
  8. sharp — exactly
  9. jam — to spread on bread
  10. hand — in cards
  11. pound — to hit hard
  12. chip — in a computer
  13. stand — on your feet
  14. chip — for betting
  15. sharp — clever
  16. stand — for spectators
  17. chip — to eat
  18. hand — help
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. stand — to bear
  21. chest — of your body
  22. cold — an illness
  23. chest — a box
  24. cold — not warm

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