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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: saw · cold · roll · game · ground · chip · stand · date

  1. He works in a ________________ mill.
  2. That was a fun ________________.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. We're on a ________________ here.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  7. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. She's very handy with a ________________.
  10. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  15. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  16. Have you settled on a ________________?
  17. I can't ________________ this cold.
  18. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  19. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  20. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  24. Add some ________________ pepper to it.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. game — a match
  3. cold — not warm
  4. roll — on a roll
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. stand — for spectators
  7. date — the fruit
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. saw — the tool
  10. stand — on your feet
  11. game — wild animals
  12. chip — for betting
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. chip — to eat
  15. roll — a cake
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. stand — to bear
  18. roll — a list
  19. chip — in a computer
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. cold — an illness
  22. ground — the earth
  23. ground — a position
  24. ground — crushed

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