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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 116 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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468
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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. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  3. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  8. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  12. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  17. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  18. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  19. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  20. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  21. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  22. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. bowl — a football final
  3. scale — size or range
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. dip — to sink
  6. game — a match
  7. dip — a sauce
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. game — wild animals
  10. fork — in a road
  11. bowl — a dish
  12. bowl — to roll
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. chip — for betting
  15. scale — in music
  16. fork — a garden tool
  17. fork — to eat with
  18. dip — to dunk
  19. scale — for weighing
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. chip — to eat
  22. chip — in a computer
  23. mine — for digging
  24. mine — an explosive

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