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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: bowl · band · chest · tear · bear · chip

  1. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  2. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  3. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  17. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  18. There's a computer ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — for betting
  2. chip — to eat
  3. bear — the animal
  4. chest — of your body
  5. bowl — to roll
  6. tear — from crying
  7. chest — a box
  8. tear — from crying
  9. tear — to rip
  10. chest — of your body
  11. bowl — a dish
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. band — a ring
  14. bowl — a football final
  15. band — a music group
  16. bear — to put up with
  17. bear — the animal
  18. chip — in a computer

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