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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. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  2. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  12. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  17. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  18. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  19. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  20. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  23. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — in a computer
  2. chip — for betting
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. kick — with a leg
  5. race — the arms race
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. wake — to stop sleeping
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. race — humankind
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. kick — in football
  12. fall — the season
  13. game — wild animals
  14. bat — the animal
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. chip — to eat
  17. branch — a division
  18. branch — of a tree
  19. wake — a trail
  20. fall — to drop
  21. game — a match
  22. fall — to drop
  23. branch — of a bank
  24. race — a contest

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