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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.

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: leaves · straw · wound · ball · bat · race · scale · chip

  1. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  3. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  4. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  7. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  8. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  14. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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. leaves — lets stay
  4. ball — a round shape
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. scale — for weighing
  7. chip — for betting
  8. ball — a great time
  9. scale — size or range
  10. ball — a dance
  11. bat — the animal
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. leaves — of a tree
  14. scale — in music
  15. race — humankind
  16. wound — an injury
  17. wound — an injury
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. leaves — to go away
  21. race — a contest
  22. race — the arms race
  23. chip — to eat
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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