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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 · wave · sharp · arm · date · mug · drill · cell

  1. My father caught me by the ________________.
  2. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  3. It's one o'clock ________________.
  4. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  5. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  6. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  7. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  12. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  13. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  14. Have you settled on a ________________?
  15. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  16. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  17. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  18. Where did you ________________ them?
  19. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  22. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. This knife is not ________________ enough.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. mug — a cup
  3. sharp — exactly
  4. date — the fruit
  5. mug — a face
  6. sharp — clever
  7. wave — of the sea
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. arm — a part of something
  10. cell — a phone
  11. chip — in a computer
  12. cell — in biology
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. drill — a practice
  16. wave — a sudden rise
  17. chip — for betting
  18. mug — to rob
  19. wave — with your hand
  20. drill — the tool
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. chip — to eat
  23. drill — army training
  24. sharp — with an edge

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