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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. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  2. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  5. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  8. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  14. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  15. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  20. The ________________ went through the wall.
  21. My father caught me by the ________________.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — in a computer
  2. march — the month
  3. march — music
  4. present — a gift
  5. chip — to eat
  6. spring — the season
  7. chip — for betting
  8. present — there
  9. ground — the earth
  10. spring — a coil
  11. ground — crushed
  12. spring — of water
  13. nail — on a finger
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. arm — a part of something
  16. cold — not warm
  17. ground — a position
  18. present — the time now
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. cold — an illness
  23. march — the month
  24. cold — the Cold War

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