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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 party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  2. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  3. Where did you ________________ them?
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  6. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  17. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  20. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. Don't do anything ________________.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — a series
  2. rash — on the skin
  3. mug — to rob
  4. game — wild animals
  5. mug — a face
  6. chip — in a computer
  7. cell — in biology
  8. chip — to eat
  9. spring — the season
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. game — a match
  12. scale — size or range
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. scale — in music
  15. cell — a phone
  16. mug — a cup
  17. chip — for betting
  18. spring — a coil
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. scale — for weighing
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. rash — hasty
  23. spring — of water
  24. cell — in a prison

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