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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: tube · hand · jam · bowl · chip · kick · kid · trunk

  1. I'll be taking the ________________.
  2. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  3. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  10. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  11. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  12. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  13. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  16. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  17. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  18. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  19. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  20. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  21. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  22. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — the underground
  2. chip — for betting
  3. jam — a tight spot
  4. kid — to tease
  5. hand — help
  6. kid — child
  7. trunk — of an elephant
  8. hand — in cards
  9. bowl — a football final
  10. chip — to eat
  11. trunk — of a tree
  12. kick — a thrill
  13. kick — with a leg
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. jam — to spread on bread
  16. bowl — to roll
  17. kick — in football
  18. tube — in a tire
  19. bowl — a dish
  20. jam — in traffic
  21. chip — in a computer
  22. trunk — of a car
  23. tube — a container
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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