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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 120 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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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: pop · cabinet · dip · hand · chip · last · field · wind

  1. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. You don't need to ________________ round.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  6. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  9. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. We're almost out of ________________.
  21. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  22. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  23. What do you think of the new ________________?
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — in a computer
  2. wind — moving air
  3. pop — to visit
  4. wind — moving air
  5. dip — to sink
  6. dip — to dunk
  7. last — finally
  8. chip — for betting
  9. pop — music
  10. field — farmland
  11. last — final
  12. hand — help
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. last — to go on
  15. dip — a sauce
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. field — for sport
  18. cabinet — a cupboard
  19. field — a subject
  20. pop — soda
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. chip — to eat
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. hand — in cards

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