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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. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  2. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  3. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  4. This piece is in a major ________________.
  5. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  6. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  11. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  14. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. Have you met the new head ________________?
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  24. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?

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

Answer key

  1. key — for a lock
  2. chip — for betting
  3. bore — gave birth
  4. key — in music
  5. chip — in a computer
  6. dip — to dunk
  7. capital — a city
  8. dip — a sauce
  9. wound — an injury
  10. chip — to eat
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. degree — temperature
  13. dip — to sink
  14. bore — to drill
  15. wound — an injury
  16. degree — from a university
  17. key — the most important part
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. degree — an amount
  22. capital — money
  23. bore — to tire
  24. coach — pulled by horses

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