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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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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: mate · chest · file · jam · chip · stock · bass · rush

  1. Have you found your soul ________________?
  2. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  3. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  4. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  5. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  6. That must've been a ________________.
  7. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  8. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  9. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  21. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  22. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  23. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  24. Tom got himself in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a partner
  2. jam — to spread on bread
  3. chip — for betting
  4. chip — in a computer
  5. jam — in traffic
  6. rush — a thrill
  7. bass — low music
  8. mate — to breed
  9. rush — hurry
  10. chest — of your body
  11. chest — a box
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. file — a tool
  14. chest — of your body
  15. stock — shares
  16. chip — to eat
  17. mate — a friend
  18. file — a document
  19. file — a line of people
  20. stock — goods
  21. bass — the instrument
  22. rush — to hurry
  23. bass — the fish
  24. jam — a tight spot

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