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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: tear · club · key · wave · chip · wound · cold · ruler

  1. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  2. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  3. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  4. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  7. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  10. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  11. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  12. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  21. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  22. This piece is in a major ________________.
  23. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — for betting
  2. wave — a sudden rise
  3. wave — of the sea
  4. wave — with your hand
  5. cold — an illness
  6. club — a group
  7. ruler — for measuring
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. ruler — a monarch
  10. key — the most important part
  11. key — for a lock
  12. club — for dancing
  13. tear — to rip
  14. wound — an injury
  15. tear — from crying
  16. tear — from crying
  17. cold — not warm
  18. club — for golf
  19. wound — an injury
  20. chip — to eat
  21. ruler — for measuring
  22. key — in music
  23. chip — in a computer
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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