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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 116 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. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  2. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. You don't need to ________________ round.
  17. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  20. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  21. We're almost out of ________________.
  22. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — in a computer
  2. chip — to eat
  3. cap — a lid
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. cap — a hat
  6. field — a subject
  7. root — of a word
  8. field — for sport
  9. kid — to tease
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. rash — hasty
  12. kid — child
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. pop — music
  15. field — farmland
  16. pop — to visit
  17. root — the cause
  18. rash — a series
  19. chip — for betting
  20. root — of a plant
  21. pop — soda
  22. cap — of ice
  23. wind — moving air
  24. wind — moving air

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