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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 120 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. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  5. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  13. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  14. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  19. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  20. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  21. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  22. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. chip — in a computer
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. kick — in football
  5. hide — animal skin
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. kick — with a leg
  8. capital — a city
  9. chip — to eat
  10. capital — money
  11. degree — temperature
  12. chip — for betting
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. board — to get on
  15. degree — from a university
  16. degree — an amount
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. board — a committee
  20. kick — a thrill
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. board — a flat piece
  23. wake — a trail
  24. wake — before a funeral

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