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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. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  3. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  6. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  10. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  16. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. I'll be taking the ________________.
  22. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  23. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  24. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. chip — for betting
  3. firm — a company
  4. drill — a practice
  5. drill — the tool
  6. chip — in a computer
  7. wind — moving air
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. tube — a container
  10. firm — steady
  11. cold — not warm
  12. drill — army training
  13. board — a flat piece
  14. game — a match
  15. game — wild animals
  16. chip — to eat
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. tube — in a tire
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. cold — an illness
  21. tube — the underground
  22. board — a committee
  23. firm — decided
  24. board — to get on

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