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

  1. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  2. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  8. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  16. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. It's one o'clock ________________.
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. Where did you ________________ them?
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  23. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a cup
  2. chip — to eat
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. sharp — clever
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. sharp — with an edge
  8. chip — for betting
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. mug — a face
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. season — of the year
  13. bat — the animal
  14. degree — from a university
  15. chip — in a computer
  16. chair — a leader
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. sharp — exactly
  19. season — in sport
  20. mug — to rob
  21. degree — an amount
  22. trunk — of a tree
  23. trunk — of a car
  24. degree — temperature

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