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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: chest · chip · club · suit · fork · tear · hand · rush

  1. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  2. That must've been a ________________.
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  14. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  18. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  19. When will it ________________ you to start?
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  22. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  23. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  24. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — for betting
  2. rush — a thrill
  3. hand — in cards
  4. suit — clothes
  5. tear — from crying
  6. club — for dancing
  7. chip — to eat
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. chest — a box
  10. rush — hurry
  11. hand — help
  12. tear — to rip
  13. fork — a garden tool
  14. fork — to eat with
  15. fork — in a road
  16. tear — from crying
  17. rush — to hurry
  18. suit — in cards
  19. suit — to fit
  20. chest — of your body
  21. club — for golf
  22. chip — in a computer
  23. club — a group
  24. chest — of your body

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