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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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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: fall · kick · chip · fan · chest · hand · dip · toast

  1. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  8. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  11. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  12. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  15. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  16. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  17. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  18. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  19. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  24. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. chip — in a computer
  4. fall — to drop
  5. hand — help
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. dip — to sink
  8. kick — in football
  9. fall — the season
  10. toast — a drink to someone
  11. dip — to dunk
  12. chip — to eat
  13. chest — of your body
  14. chip — for betting
  15. fan — to cool the air
  16. toast — bread
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. kick — with a leg
  19. toast — the most admired
  20. chest — a box
  21. hand — in cards
  22. chest — of your body
  23. kick — a thrill
  24. dip — a sauce

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