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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: toast · bulb · rock · game · wake · chest · mark · chip

  1. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  4. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  5. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  6. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  13. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  16. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  17. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  20. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. I've got to change the light ________________.
  23. The light ________________ burned out.
  24. There's a computer ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. rock — to move gently
  4. mark — a trace
  5. chip — for betting
  6. wake — a trail
  7. chest — of your body
  8. wake — to stop sleeping
  9. game — wild animals
  10. mark — a grade
  11. game — a match
  12. toast — a drink to someone
  13. rock — a stone
  14. chest — of your body
  15. mark — to pay attention
  16. toast — bread
  17. chip — to eat
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. toast — the most admired
  20. bulb — of a plant
  21. chest — a box
  22. bulb — for light
  23. bulb — for light
  24. chip — in a computer

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