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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: hand · squash · sharp · chip · bank · band · race · wound

  1. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  2. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  3. It's one o'clock ________________.
  4. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  12. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  23. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  24. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the sport
  2. chip — in a computer
  3. sharp — exactly
  4. bank — for money
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. race — humankind
  7. chip — to eat
  8. wound — an injury
  9. sharp — clever
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. band — a music group
  12. chip — for betting
  13. hand — help
  14. hand — in cards
  15. wound — an injury
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. race — the arms race
  18. band — a ring
  19. squash — to crush
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. race — a contest
  22. band — a rubber band
  23. bank — of a river
  24. bank — for money

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