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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. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  2. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  3. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  4. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  12. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  13. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  14. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — to eat
  2. bank — for money
  3. cap — of ice
  4. chip — for betting
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. cap — a lid
  8. wax — to grow
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. last — final
  11. board — to get on
  12. board — a flat piece
  13. bank — for money
  14. board — a committee
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. cap — a hat
  17. last — to go on
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. bank — of a river
  20. last — finally
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. chip — in a computer
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. perch — the fish

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