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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: hand · pitcher · scale · key · land · chip · mouse · wound

  1. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  13. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  16. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  17. This piece is in a major ________________.
  18. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  19. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. land — a country
  3. chip — in a computer
  4. hand — help
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. wound — an injury
  8. key — for a lock
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. wound — an injury
  12. scale — in music
  13. mouse — for a computer
  14. scale — size or range
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. chip — for betting
  17. key — in music
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. key — the most important part
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. land — to come down
  22. hand — in cards
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. chip — to eat

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