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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
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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: saw · content · game · chip · wound · object · row · date

  1. Have you settled on a ________________?
  2. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  3. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  15. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  16. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  17. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  18. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  19. She's very handy with a ________________.
  20. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  21. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  22. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  23. He works in a ________________ mill.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. row — to paddle
  3. chip — to eat
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. object — to protest
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. game — wild animals
  8. row — a line
  9. wound — an injury
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. wound — an injury
  12. game — a match
  13. content — happy
  14. object — an aim
  15. saw — past of 'see'
  16. content — the amount
  17. date — the fruit
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. saw — the tool
  20. chip — for betting
  21. chip — in a computer
  22. object — a thing
  23. saw — the tool
  24. game — a kind of play

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