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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. We're almost out of ________________.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. You don't need to ________________ round.
  9. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  10. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  11. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  12. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  13. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  14. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  15. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  16. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  17. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  18. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — soda
  2. cell — a phone
  3. present — there
  4. sharp — clever
  5. staff — employees
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. kid — to tease
  8. pop — to visit
  9. present — a gift
  10. track — a path
  11. chip — to eat
  12. track — to keep track
  13. chip — in a computer
  14. pop — music
  15. staff — employees
  16. staff — a stick
  17. present — the time now
  18. chip — for betting
  19. kid — child
  20. cell — in biology
  21. sharp — with an edge
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. track — a song
  24. sharp — exactly

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