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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. That was a fun ________________.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  7. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  8. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  11. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  15. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  16. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  17. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  18. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  19. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  22. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  23. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. chest — of your body
  3. field — farmland
  4. chip — for betting
  5. field — for sport
  6. foot — the bottom
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. chip — in a computer
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. foot — part of the body
  11. ruler — a monarch
  12. chest — of your body
  13. chest — a box
  14. ruler — for measuring
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. mouse — for a computer
  18. chip — to eat
  19. foot — a measure
  20. field — a subject
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. racket — a loud noise
  24. game — wild animals

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