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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  17. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. chip — in a computer
  2. field — for sport
  3. game — a match
  4. field — farmland
  5. tear — from crying
  6. chip — to eat
  7. degree — from a university
  8. tear — from crying
  9. chip — for betting
  10. game — wild animals
  11. tear — to rip
  12. craft — a handicraft
  13. degree — temperature
  14. field — a subject
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. craft — boats
  17. craft — a skill
  18. degree — an amount

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