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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. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  9. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  10. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. The ________________ market has crashed.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  16. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  17. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  23. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — a company
  2. degree — temperature
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. rock — to move gently
  5. mine — for digging
  6. rock — music
  7. degree — an amount
  8. stock — goods
  9. chip — to eat
  10. firm — steady
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. wind — moving air
  13. stock — shares
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. rock — a stone
  16. chip — for betting
  17. stock — a soup base
  18. degree — from a university
  19. wind — moving air
  20. wind — to turn a key
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. chip — in a computer
  23. firm — decided
  24. straw — dry grass

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