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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 girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  2. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  3. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  4. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  5. I'll be taking the ________________.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  9. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a line
  2. fall — the season
  3. chip — for betting
  4. spell — a short time
  5. tube — the underground
  6. fall — to drop
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. chip — in a computer
  9. fall — to drop
  10. spell — letters
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. rash — on the skin
  14. rash — hasty
  15. hide — animal skin
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. row — to paddle
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. snap — to click
  21. rash — a series
  22. spell — magic
  23. tube — a container
  24. chip — to eat

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