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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: game · sharp · hide · court · scale · net · last · chip

  1. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  2. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  3. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  4. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  12. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  23. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — for weighing
  2. hide — animal skin
  3. chip — in a computer
  4. scale — in music
  5. net — after costs
  6. net — in sport
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. net — for catching
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. court — for sport
  11. court — of law
  12. sharp — with an edge
  13. game — a match
  14. last — to go on
  15. scale — size or range
  16. last — final
  17. chip — for betting
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. game — wild animals
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. court — of a king
  22. sharp — clever
  23. chip — to eat
  24. last — finally

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