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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: game · pop · chip · fan · pitcher · chest · rest · face

  1. We're almost out of ________________.
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  4. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  7. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. You don't need to ________________ round.
  19. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  20. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  21. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  24. There's a computer ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — soda
  2. chest — of your body
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. face — part of the head
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. chip — for betting
  7. pop — music
  8. game — a match
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. face — to point toward
  11. game — wild animals
  12. chip — to eat
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. face — to confront
  15. chest — a box
  16. chest — of your body
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. pop — to visit
  19. fan — to cool the air
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. rest — a break
  22. rest — what's left
  23. rest — what's left
  24. chip — in a computer

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