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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: snap · fall · game · fine · last · mine · fork · chip

  1. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  2. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  10. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  13. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  14. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  15. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  19. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  20. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. fine — high quality
  2. fork — to eat with
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. game — a match
  5. fine — a penalty
  6. snap — to click
  7. chip — to eat
  8. game — wild animals
  9. snap — to snap out of it
  10. fall — to drop
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. chip — for betting
  13. fork — a garden tool
  14. snap — to speak sharply
  15. chip — in a computer
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. fall — to drop
  18. fall — the season
  19. fine — all right
  20. fork — in a road
  21. last — finally
  22. last — to go on
  23. mine — for digging
  24. last — final

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