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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 120 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 · press · straw · kid · mark · wind · bulb · arm

  1. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  2. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  3. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  4. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. I've got to change the light ________________.
  12. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. The light ________________ burned out.
  20. Did you ________________ the button?
  21. My father caught me by the ________________.
  22. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  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. arm — a part of something
  2. chip — to eat
  3. chip — for betting
  4. mark — a trace
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. press — a publisher
  7. wind — moving air
  8. kid — to tease
  9. chip — in a computer
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. bulb — for light
  12. mark — a grade
  13. kid — child
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. wind — moving air
  16. mark — to pay attention
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. bulb — for light
  20. press — to push
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. bulb — of a plant
  23. press — newspapers
  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