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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. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  6. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  7. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  8. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  9. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  10. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  11. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. I can't ________________ this cold.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  19. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  24. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. bat — the animal
  3. degree — temperature
  4. club — for golf
  5. chip — to eat
  6. chip — for betting
  7. stand — for spectators
  8. dip — to sink
  9. dip — a sauce
  10. dip — to dunk
  11. chip — in a computer
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. stand — to bear
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. degree — from a university
  16. stand — on your feet
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. club — for dancing
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. degree — an amount
  21. hide — animal skin
  22. shower — rain
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. club — a group

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