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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. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  10. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  11. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  12. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  13. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  16. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  20. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  21. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  22. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. Have you found your soul ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. chip — to eat
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. staff — employees
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. firm — steady
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. degree — from a university
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. staff — a stick
  10. pound — a weight
  11. firm — a company
  12. staff — employees
  13. chip — in a computer
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. pound — for dogs
  16. firm — decided
  17. mate — a friend
  18. degree — temperature
  19. bark — to shout
  20. pound — to hit hard
  21. chip — for betting
  22. mate — to breed
  23. degree — an amount
  24. mate — a partner

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