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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: hide · chest · season · hand · object · chip · wound · bass

  1. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  7. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  12. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  13. Did you ________________ the meat?
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  16. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  17. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  18. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  22. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. I play ________________ in a jazz band.

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

Answer key

  1. object — an aim
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. chip — to eat
  4. hand — help
  5. wound — an injury
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. wound — an injury
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. season — in sport
  11. chip — for betting
  12. object — to protest
  13. season — to add flavour
  14. chest — of your body
  15. bass — low music
  16. hide — animal skin
  17. chip — in a computer
  18. object — a thing
  19. chest — a box
  20. hand — in cards
  21. chest — of your body
  22. bass — the fish
  23. season — of the year
  24. bass — the instrument

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