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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. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  2. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  5. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  6. The ________________ took off on time.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. chip — in a computer
  3. mine — for digging
  4. can — to be able to
  5. plane — in geometry
  6. plane — an aircraft
  7. degree — an amount
  8. spell — letters
  9. row — a line
  10. plane — a tool
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. spell — a short time
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. degree — from a university
  15. spell — magic
  16. last — to go on
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. can — a tin
  19. last — finally
  20. row — to paddle
  21. last — final
  22. chip — to eat
  23. degree — temperature
  24. chip — for betting

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