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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: race · chest · foot · game · chip · press · bowl · ground

  1. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  2. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  4. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  5. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  6. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  10. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  11. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  16. Did you ________________ the button?
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  20. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  21. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — the earth
  2. chest — a box
  3. ground — crushed
  4. bowl — a dish
  5. foot — part of the body
  6. foot — the bottom
  7. game — wild animals
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. bowl — a football final
  10. chip — in a computer
  11. bowl — to roll
  12. ground — a position
  13. chip — to eat
  14. race — the arms race
  15. chip — for betting
  16. press — to push
  17. chest — of your body
  18. race — a contest
  19. press — newspapers
  20. press — a publisher
  21. foot — a measure
  22. game — a match
  23. chest — of your body
  24. race — humankind

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