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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. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  2. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  8. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  9. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  10. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  14. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  18. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  19. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  20. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  21. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — for betting
  2. club — for golf
  3. lash — to lash out
  4. chest — of your body
  5. chest — a box
  6. club — for dancing
  7. bore — to tire
  8. bore — to drill
  9. lash — a whip stroke
  10. club — a group
  11. file — a document
  12. wind — moving air
  13. bore — gave birth
  14. file — a tool
  15. file — a line of people
  16. cap — a lid
  17. chest — of your body
  18. chip — to eat
  19. cap — of ice
  20. chip — in a computer
  21. lash — an eyelash
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. wind — moving air
  24. cap — a hat

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