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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: court · chip · land · mouse · pitcher · chest · pit · rest

  1. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  8. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  18. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  19. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  20. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  21. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. Should I buy a wireless ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. chip — for betting
  2. chest — of your body
  3. chest — of your body
  4. chest — a box
  5. court — of law
  6. land — ground
  7. rest — a break
  8. rest — what's left
  9. land — to come down
  10. chip — in a computer
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. pit — in a race
  16. court — for sport
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. chip — to eat
  19. rest — what's left
  20. pit — a hole
  21. pit — a fruit stone
  22. court — of a king
  23. land — a country
  24. mouse — for a computer

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