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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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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 · swing · wave · chest · present · kid · arm

  1. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  3. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  6. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. The ________________ went through the wall.
  11. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. My father caught me by the ________________.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  18. David sat on the ________________.
  19. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  20. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  21. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  22. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  23. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  24. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. present — the time now
  3. wave — of the sea
  4. chest — of your body
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. wave — a sudden rise
  7. kid — to tease
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. chest — a box
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. chip — for betting
  12. kid — child
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. chest — of your body
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. swing — in golf
  17. present — a gift
  18. swing — to play on
  19. chip — in a computer
  20. wave — with your hand
  21. swing — music
  22. arm — a part of something
  23. nail — on a finger
  24. chip — to eat

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