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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 120 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: chip · bowl · game · squash · deal · field · file · hand

  1. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  3. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  20. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  21. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  22. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  23. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  24. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. deal — an agreement
  3. chip — for betting
  4. file — a line of people
  5. field — for sport
  6. game — a match
  7. file — a tool
  8. field — a subject
  9. file — a document
  10. chip — in a computer
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. squash — to crush
  13. bowl — a dish
  14. game — wild animals
  15. squash — the sport
  16. field — farmland
  17. chip — to eat
  18. hand — in cards
  19. bowl — a football final
  20. game — a kind of play
  21. deal — a big deal
  22. squash — the vegetable
  23. deal — to handle
  24. bowl — to roll

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