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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. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  4. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  5. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  8. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  9. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  10. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. My father caught me by the ________________.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  19. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  20. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  21. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  22. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. hand — in cards
  3. arm — a part of something
  4. cap — of ice
  5. wave — of the sea
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. dip — a sauce
  8. drill — army training
  9. cap — a lid
  10. wave — a sudden rise
  11. drill — the tool
  12. drill — a practice
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. hand — help
  16. chip — in a computer
  17. cell — a phone
  18. dip — to sink
  19. wave — with your hand
  20. dip — to dunk
  21. chip — to eat
  22. cap — a hat
  23. cell — in biology
  24. chip — for betting

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