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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. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  2. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  3. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  8. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  13. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. I'll be taking the ________________.
  16. You don't need to ________________ round.
  17. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  18. We're almost out of ________________.
  19. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  20. The King held a masked ________________.
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  23. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — to eat
  2. wave — of the sea
  3. pop — music
  4. file — a line of people
  5. wave — with your hand
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. ball — a round shape
  8. wave — a sudden rise
  9. kid — child
  10. kid — to tease
  11. fall — to drop
  12. fall — the season
  13. chip — in a computer
  14. file — a document
  15. tube — the underground
  16. pop — to visit
  17. ball — a great time
  18. pop — soda
  19. chip — for betting
  20. ball — a dance
  21. tube — a container
  22. fall — to drop
  23. tube — in a tire
  24. file — a tool

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