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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. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  3. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  4. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  5. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  6. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  7. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  8. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  9. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  12. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  13. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  14. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  20. He is an ace ________________.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  23. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  24. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. vault — an arched ceiling
  3. chip — in a computer
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. scale — size or range
  6. scale — for weighing
  7. chip — for betting
  8. foot — a measure
  9. scale — in music
  10. degree — from a university
  11. chip — to eat
  12. vault — a safe
  13. foot — the bottom
  14. content — the amount
  15. perch — the fish
  16. content — happy
  17. degree — temperature
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. foot — part of the body
  20. pitcher — in baseball
  21. degree — an amount
  22. vault — in gymnastics
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. perch — for a bird

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