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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 116 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: cell · chip · squash · mine · wound · pitch · stick · scale

  1. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  2. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  3. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  4. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  16. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  19. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  20. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  23. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  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. wound — an injury
  2. pitch — a sports field
  3. stick — to attach or keep to
  4. chip — to eat
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. wound — an injury
  7. pitch — a sales talk
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. squash — the sport
  11. cell — a phone
  12. squash — to crush
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. cell — in biology
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. pitch — completely
  17. mine — for digging
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. chip — for betting
  20. scale — size or range
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. scale — in music
  23. scale — for weighing
  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