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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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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: court · chip · kick · cold · rush · wind · plane · dip

  1. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  2. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. That must've been a ________________.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  9. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  10. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  11. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  16. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  17. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  18. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  19. The ________________ took off on time.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. plane — a tool
  2. plane — in geometry
  3. rush — hurry
  4. rush — a thrill
  5. cold — an illness
  6. court — of law
  7. wind — moving air
  8. dip — to dunk
  9. chip — for betting
  10. dip — a sauce
  11. rush — to hurry
  12. court — of a king
  13. kick — in football
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. dip — to sink
  16. kick — with a leg
  17. chip — to eat
  18. kick — a thrill
  19. plane — an aircraft
  20. wind — moving air
  21. cold — not warm
  22. chip — in a computer
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. court — for sport

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