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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: pitcher · chest · current · row · chip · cue · rash · ground

  1. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. Don't do anything ________________.
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  13. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  19. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  23. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  24. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — in a computer
  2. ground — crushed
  3. ground — the earth
  4. rash — hasty
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. current — of water
  7. chest — of your body
  8. rash — a series
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. cue — a hint
  11. chest — a box
  12. cue — for pool
  13. chip — for betting
  14. ground — a position
  15. row — a line
  16. chest — of your body
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. chip — to eat
  19. cue — a signal
  20. row — to paddle
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. row — a quarrel
  23. current — electric
  24. current — happening now

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