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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 ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  8. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  14. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  19. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. The ________________ took off on time.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  24. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. chip — in a computer
  3. net — for catching
  4. squash — the sport
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. mouse — for a computer
  8. chip — for betting
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. plane — a tool
  12. squash — to crush
  13. chip — to eat
  14. plane — in geometry
  15. race — the arms race
  16. net — after costs
  17. race — a contest
  18. ground — crushed
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. ground — the earth
  21. plane — an aircraft
  22. race — humankind
  23. ground — a position
  24. mouse — the animal

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