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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: bat · rash · court · bear · roll · cap · fan · chip

  1. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  2. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  3. We're on a ________________ here.
  4. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  5. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  8. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  9. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  10. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  11. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  12. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  13. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  18. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  23. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — to put up with
  2. rash — a series
  3. roll — on a roll
  4. bear — the animal
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. cap — a hat
  7. chip — for betting
  8. bear — the animal
  9. chip — in a computer
  10. chip — to eat
  11. court — of law
  12. cap — a lid
  13. fan — to cool the air
  14. rash — hasty
  15. roll — a cake
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. roll — a list
  18. rash — on the skin
  19. court — for sport
  20. court — of a king
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. cap — of ice
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. bat — the animal

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