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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: arm · plane · swing · cold · scale · staff · jam · chip

  1. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  3. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  4. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  5. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  8. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  9. The ________________ took off on time.
  10. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  11. My father caught me by the ________________.
  12. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  13. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  18. David sat on the ________________.
  19. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  20. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  21. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  22. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  23. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. staff — employees
  4. staff — a stick
  5. jam — in traffic
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. arm — a part of something
  8. chip — for betting
  9. plane — an aircraft
  10. jam — a tight spot
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. plane — in geometry
  13. swing — music
  14. scale — size or range
  15. staff — employees
  16. cold — not warm
  17. swing — in golf
  18. swing — to play on
  19. jam — to spread on bread
  20. chip — in a computer
  21. chip — to eat
  22. scale — in music
  23. plane — a tool
  24. scale — for weighing

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