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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. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  3. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  4. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  5. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  6. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  7. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. David sat on the ________________.
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  21. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  22. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — to eat
  2. chip — for betting
  3. rule — to rule out
  4. swing — music
  5. craft — boats
  6. swing — in golf
  7. chest — a box
  8. degree — temperature
  9. chest — of your body
  10. game — wild animals
  11. snap — to click
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. degree — from a university
  15. swing — to play on
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. degree — an amount
  18. craft — a handicraft
  19. game — a match
  20. chip — in a computer
  21. rule — government
  22. craft — a skill
  23. chest — of your body
  24. rule — a law

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