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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: chip · temple · tube · toast · chest · saw · snap · fall

  1. I'll be taking the ________________.
  2. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  6. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  11. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  12. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  19. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  20. She's very handy with a ________________.
  21. When was this ________________ built?
  22. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — the underground
  2. toast — bread
  3. saw — the tool
  4. snap — to click
  5. tube — in a tire
  6. chip — in a computer
  7. chest — of your body
  8. toast — the most admired
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. fall — to drop
  11. saw — past of 'see'
  12. tube — a container
  13. fall — the season
  14. temple — side of the head
  15. chest — a box
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. fall — to drop
  18. temple — a place of worship
  19. toast — a drink to someone
  20. saw — the tool
  21. temple — a place of worship
  22. chip — to eat
  23. chest — of your body
  24. chip — for betting

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