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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.

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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 · game · snap · deal · chest · prune · kick · fork

  1. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  5. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  13. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  14. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  15. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  19. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  20. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  21. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  22. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  23. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  24. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. kick — in football
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. deal — to handle
  5. kick — a thrill
  6. game — wild animals
  7. prune — to trim
  8. chest — of your body
  9. fork — in a road
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. chest — a box
  13. chip — in a computer
  14. deal — a big deal
  15. prune — to trim
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. game — a match
  18. kick — with a leg
  19. prune — the fruit
  20. snap — to click
  21. fork — to eat with
  22. deal — an agreement
  23. chip — to eat
  24. chip — for betting

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