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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 116 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. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  3. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  4. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  5. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  6. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  7. Have you found your soul ________________?
  8. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  14. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  15. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  18. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  23. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. chip — to eat
  3. chip — for betting
  4. vault — in gymnastics
  5. snap — to snap out of it
  6. mate — to breed
  7. mate — a partner
  8. pound — for dogs
  9. land — a country
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. land — ground
  12. season — of the year
  13. vault — a safe
  14. mate — a friend
  15. pound — a weight
  16. land — to come down
  17. pound — to hit hard
  18. season — in sport
  19. shower — to wash
  20. vault — an arched ceiling
  21. shower — rain
  22. snap — to click
  23. chip — in a computer
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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