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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: chair · wound · lie · hand · chip · game · mug · swing

  1. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  3. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. Where did you ________________ them?
  9. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  10. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  13. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  14. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  17. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  23. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. mug — a face
  3. lie — to recline
  4. chair — a leader
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. swing — to play on
  8. mug — to rob
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. chip — for betting
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. chair — a professorship
  13. mug — a cup
  14. swing — in golf
  15. hand — help
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. wound — an injury
  18. wound — an injury
  19. game — a match
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. game — wild animals
  22. chip — to eat
  23. chip — in a computer
  24. swing — music

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