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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 116 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: game · cold · pass · pound · staff · perch · chip · tube

  1. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  2. I'll be taking the ________________.
  3. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  8. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  9. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  10. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  13. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  14. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  15. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  16. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  17. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  20. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. tube — the underground
  3. pass — to spend time
  4. cold — not warm
  5. staff — employees
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. tube — in a tire
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. chip — in a computer
  10. pass — to succeed
  11. game — wild animals
  12. pound — a weight
  13. chip — for betting
  14. pound — for dogs
  15. staff — a stick
  16. pound — to hit hard
  17. chip — to eat
  18. cold — an illness
  19. pass — a permit
  20. game — a kind of play
  21. tube — a container
  22. perch — the fish
  23. game — a match
  24. perch — for a bird

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