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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: hand · chest · date · arm · chip · file · tear · board

  1. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  2. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  7. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. My father caught me by the ________________.
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  16. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  17. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  18. Have you settled on a ________________?
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  21. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  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. hand — part of the body
  2. file — a line of people
  3. chest — of your body
  4. tear — from crying
  5. file — a document
  6. arm — a part of something
  7. chip — to eat
  8. chest — of your body
  9. tear — to rip
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. chest — a box
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. tear — from crying
  14. hand — in cards
  15. board — a committee
  16. chip — for betting
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. hand — help
  20. board — to get on
  21. board — a flat piece
  22. file — a tool
  23. date — the fruit
  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