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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: shower · game · date · fall · chip · pit · mine · board

  1. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  2. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  7. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  12. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  16. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. Have you settled on a ________________?
  20. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  21. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  22. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — for betting
  2. chip — to eat
  3. mine — for digging
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. chip — in a computer
  7. board — a committee
  8. fall — to drop
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. game — a match
  11. fall — to drop
  12. pit — in a race
  13. fall — the season
  14. shower — rain
  15. pit — a hole
  16. date — the fruit
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. shower — to wash
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. pit — a fruit stone
  21. board — to get on
  22. board — a flat piece
  23. game — wild animals
  24. mine — belonging to me

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