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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: ruler · bat · spell · bark · ground · straw · mine · chip

  1. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  3. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  4. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  5. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  6. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  19. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. chip — in a computer
  3. chip — to eat
  4. chip — for betting
  5. ruler — for measuring
  6. spell — magic
  7. bark — to shout
  8. bark — of a tree
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. spell — letters
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. ruler — a monarch
  15. ground — crushed
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. mine — for digging
  18. bark — a dog's sound
  19. spell — a short time
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. ground — the earth
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. bat — the animal
  24. ground — a position

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