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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: season · race · chip · can · straw · ground · hand · jam

  1. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  4. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  10. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  11. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  15. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  23. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. race — the arms race
  4. jam — to spread on bread
  5. ground — the earth
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. can — a tin
  8. race — humankind
  9. jam — a tight spot
  10. chip — to eat
  11. chip — for betting
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. race — a contest
  14. season — in sport
  15. can — a tin
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. ground — a position
  18. hand — help
  19. jam — in traffic
  20. ground — crushed
  21. hand — in cards
  22. can — to be able to
  23. chip — in a computer
  24. season — of the year

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