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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: kid · game · chip · face · plane · pound · spell · key

  1. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  3. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  4. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  14. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  15. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  16. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  17. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. The ________________ took off on time.
  21. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  24. This piece is in a major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. key — for a lock
  3. plane — a tool
  4. chip — in a computer
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. face — to confront
  7. kid — child
  8. game — a match
  9. face — part of the head
  10. spell — a short time
  11. chip — for betting
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. plane — in geometry
  14. pound — a weight
  15. face — to point toward
  16. pound — to hit hard
  17. chip — to eat
  18. spell — magic
  19. spell — letters
  20. plane — an aircraft
  21. key — the most important part
  22. game — wild animals
  23. pound — for dogs
  24. key — in music

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