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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: ground · row · chip · straw · hand · bank · pitch · mouse

  1. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  12. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  13. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  18. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  19. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  20. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  21. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. chip — for betting
  2. ground — crushed
  3. ground — the earth
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. ground — a position
  6. row — a line
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. pitch — a sales talk
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. bank — for money
  12. pitch — completely
  13. mouse — for a computer
  14. hand — in cards
  15. pitch — a sports field
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. chip — in a computer
  19. bank — for money
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. chip — to eat
  22. row — to paddle
  23. bank — of a river
  24. hand — help

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