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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. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  4. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  5. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  11. My mare is ________________ in color.
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  14. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  20. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  21. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a lid
  2. tear — from crying
  3. chip — in a computer
  4. bay — a part of the sea
  5. chip — for betting
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. cap — of ice
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. content — happy
  10. cap — a hat
  11. bay — a horse colour
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. bowl — a football final
  14. bowl — to roll
  15. content — the amount
  16. tear — to rip
  17. wake — a trail
  18. degree — from a university
  19. chip — to eat
  20. wake — to stop sleeping
  21. bay — to keep at bay
  22. degree — temperature
  23. degree — an amount
  24. tear — from crying

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