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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. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  6. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  7. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  8. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  15. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  19. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — in music
  2. degree — an amount
  3. net — in sport
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. scale — size or range
  6. firm — a company
  7. chip — for betting
  8. face — part of the head
  9. kid — to tease
  10. march — the month
  11. net — after costs
  12. degree — temperature
  13. net — for catching
  14. chip — to eat
  15. chip — in a computer
  16. face — to point toward
  17. march — the month
  18. scale — for weighing
  19. firm — steady
  20. march — music
  21. kid — child
  22. firm — decided
  23. degree — from a university
  24. face — to confront

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