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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: roll · chip · jam · suit · land · court · file · sharp

  1. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  12. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  13. We're on a ________________ here.
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. When will it ________________ you to start?
  16. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  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. roll — a list
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. chip — for betting
  4. land — ground
  5. court — of a king
  6. chip — to eat
  7. land — to come down
  8. roll — a cake
  9. file — a document
  10. court — of law
  11. jam — in traffic
  12. jam — to spread on bread
  13. roll — on a roll
  14. land — a country
  15. suit — to fit
  16. suit — in cards
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. file — a tool
  19. court — for sport
  20. suit — clothes
  21. sharp — clever
  22. file — a line of people
  23. jam — a tight spot
  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