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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. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  2. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  13. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. chip — in a computer
  3. net — for catching
  4. lean — thin
  5. band — a music group
  6. march — music
  7. chip — for betting
  8. march — the month
  9. degree — from a university
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. degree — temperature
  15. hide — animal skin
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. march — the month
  18. band — a ring
  19. net — after costs
  20. degree — an amount
  21. game — wild animals
  22. chip — to eat
  23. net — in sport
  24. game — a match

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