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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: wound · chip · game · root · lean · file · date · chair

  1. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  2. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  3. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  13. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  23. Have you settled on a ________________?
  24. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to rest against
  2. chip — in a computer
  3. chip — to eat
  4. file — a line of people
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. file — a tool
  7. wound — an injury
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. chair — a leader
  11. wound — an injury
  12. chip — for betting
  13. root — of a plant
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. date — the fruit
  16. game — wild animals
  17. root — of a word
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. lean — thin
  20. game — a match
  21. file — a document
  22. root — the cause
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. lean — to bend

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