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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. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  2. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  3. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  4. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  5. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  6. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  10. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  11. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  12. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  19. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  22. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — for betting
  2. kick — a thrill
  3. staff — employees
  4. track — a song
  5. mark — to pay attention
  6. staff — a stick
  7. kid — child
  8. net — in sport
  9. staff — employees
  10. chip — to eat
  11. mark — a grade
  12. kick — in football
  13. degree — an amount
  14. kick — with a leg
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. mark — a trace
  17. kid — to tease
  18. chip — in a computer
  19. net — after costs
  20. degree — from a university
  21. track — to keep track
  22. track — a path
  23. net — for catching
  24. degree — temperature

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