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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: straw · leaves · rash · roll · mate · hand · chip · game

  1. We're on a ________________ here.
  2. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  4. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  5. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  6. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  12. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — on a roll
  2. mate — a friend
  3. chip — to eat
  4. rash — on the skin
  5. chip — for betting
  6. mate — to breed
  7. game — a match
  8. rash — hasty
  9. leaves — lets stay
  10. game — wild animals
  11. rash — a series
  12. leaves — to go away
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. mate — a partner
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. chip — in a computer
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. hand — in cards
  19. hand — help
  20. roll — a cake
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. leaves — of a tree
  23. game — a kind of play
  24. roll — a list

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