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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. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  2. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  14. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  22. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  23. False peace will not ________________.
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ruler — a monarch
  2. chip — for betting
  3. ground — the earth
  4. last — final
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. ruler — for measuring
  7. last — finally
  8. ground — crushed
  9. degree — an amount
  10. season — in sport
  11. pit — in a race
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. pit — a hole
  14. chip — to eat
  15. mine — for digging
  16. degree — temperature
  17. degree — from a university
  18. ground — a position
  19. chip — in a computer
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. pit — a fruit stone
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. last — to go on
  24. season — of the year

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