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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. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  2. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  7. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  8. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  9. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  10. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  13. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  17. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  20. We're on a ________________ here.
  21. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  22. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  23. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  24. The King held a masked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a cake
  2. staff — employees
  3. cold — not warm
  4. track — a song
  5. cold — an illness
  6. chip — for betting
  7. chip — to eat
  8. track — a path
  9. chip — in a computer
  10. staff — a stick
  11. cap — a hat
  12. ball — a round shape
  13. roll — a list
  14. cap — a lid
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. cap — of ice
  17. perch — the fish
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. track — to keep track
  20. roll — on a roll
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. ball — a great time
  23. staff — employees
  24. ball — a dance

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