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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: chip · bowl · court · chest · key · file · wave · sharp

  1. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  4. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  5. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. This piece is in a major ________________.
  10. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  11. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  16. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  20. It's one o'clock ________________.
  21. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — of the sea
  2. court — for sport
  3. key — the most important part
  4. chip — for betting
  5. bowl — a dish
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. chip — in a computer
  8. file — a document
  9. key — in music
  10. wave — with your hand
  11. key — for a lock
  12. file — a tool
  13. file — a line of people
  14. chest — of your body
  15. chip — to eat
  16. wave — a sudden rise
  17. chest — a box
  18. chest — of your body
  19. bowl — to roll
  20. sharp — exactly
  21. bowl — a football final
  22. court — of law
  23. sharp — clever
  24. court — of a king

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