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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: content · pop · wound · chip · hand · bat · present · saw

  1. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  2. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  3. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. He works in a ________________ mill.
  8. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  9. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. We're almost out of ________________.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. You don't need to ________________ round.
  23. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  24. She's very handy with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — past of 'see'
  2. present — there
  3. chip — in a computer
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. pop — music
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. saw — the tool
  8. present — a gift
  9. chip — to eat
  10. bat — the animal
  11. chip — for betting
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. content — the amount
  14. wound — an injury
  15. content — happy
  16. pop — soda
  17. wound — an injury
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. present — the time now
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. hand — in cards
  22. pop — to visit
  23. hand — help
  24. saw — the tool

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