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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. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  2. That was a fun ________________.
  3. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  6. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  9. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  14. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  15. What do you think of the new ________________?
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  18. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  19. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  22. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — in a computer
  2. game — a match
  3. lean — to bend
  4. degree — an amount
  5. chip — for betting
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. lean — thin
  9. fine — all right
  10. field — farmland
  11. game — wild animals
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. toast — a drink to someone
  14. toast — the most admired
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. degree — temperature
  17. cabinet — a cupboard
  18. toast — bread
  19. fine — high quality
  20. degree — from a university
  21. chip — to eat
  22. fine — a penalty
  23. field — for sport
  24. field — a subject

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