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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. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  4. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  5. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  6. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  7. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  8. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  9. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  10. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  11. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  12. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  13. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  14. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  15. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  16. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  17. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  18. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  19. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  20. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  24. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a path
  2. degree — from a university
  3. chip — for betting
  4. chip — to eat
  5. dip — a sauce
  6. squash — the vegetable
  7. squash — the sport
  8. lie — to recline
  9. dip — to dunk
  10. squash — to crush
  11. track — a song
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. dip — to sink
  14. bank — of a river
  15. scale — for weighing
  16. track — to keep track
  17. bank — for money
  18. chip — in a computer
  19. bank — for money
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. degree — temperature
  22. degree — an amount
  23. scale — size or range
  24. scale — in music

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