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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 · nail · kid · bass · straw · row · roll · game

  1. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  6. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  10. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  11. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  14. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  17. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  20. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  21. We're on a ________________ here.
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. The ________________ went through the wall.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a line
  2. game — wild animals
  3. row — to paddle
  4. kid — to tease
  5. nail — on a finger
  6. chip — to eat
  7. game — a match
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. chip — for betting
  10. bass — the fish
  11. roll — a cake
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. bass — the instrument
  14. roll — a list
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. chip — in a computer
  17. bass — low music
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. game — a kind of play
  21. roll — on a roll
  22. kid — child
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. row — a quarrel

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