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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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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: current · cold · hand · stick · chip · rash · staff · pit

  1. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  2. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  3. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  4. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  5. Don't do anything ________________.
  6. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  11. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  14. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  15. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  16. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  17. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  24. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a hole
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. staff — employees
  4. chip — to eat
  5. rash — hasty
  6. pit — in a race
  7. cold — an illness
  8. rash — on the skin
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. staff — a stick
  11. current — electric
  12. hand — in cards
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. staff — employees
  15. stick — to attach or keep to
  16. chip — in a computer
  17. current — of water
  18. rash — a series
  19. current — happening now
  20. cold — not warm
  21. hand — help
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. pit — a fruit stone
  24. chip — for betting

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