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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. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  2. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  3. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  4. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  5. You don't need to ________________ round.
  6. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  7. What do you think of the new ________________?
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. Don't do anything ________________.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  21. We're almost out of ________________.
  22. Did you ________________ the button?
  23. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  24. He keeps ________________ of his days.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. chip — to eat
  4. chip — for betting
  5. pop — to visit
  6. cabinet — a cupboard
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. chest — of your body
  9. pop — music
  10. rash — a series
  11. press — a publisher
  12. spring — of water
  13. track — a path
  14. spring — the season
  15. rash — hasty
  16. spring — a coil
  17. chest — of your body
  18. press — newspapers
  19. chest — a box
  20. chip — in a computer
  21. pop — soda
  22. press — to push
  23. rash — on the skin
  24. track — to keep track

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