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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 116 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. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  2. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  9. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  12. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  16. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  17. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  18. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  19. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  22. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  23. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  24. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — in a road
  2. chip — for betting
  3. hand — help
  4. degree — temperature
  5. chip — to eat
  6. hand — in cards
  7. degree — an amount
  8. dip — to sink
  9. pitch — a sales talk
  10. drill — army training
  11. branch — of a bank
  12. dip — a sauce
  13. branch — a division
  14. degree — from a university
  15. fork — to eat with
  16. chip — in a computer
  17. pitch — a sports field
  18. dip — to dunk
  19. drill — the tool
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. drill — a practice
  22. branch — of a tree
  23. fork — a garden tool
  24. pitch — completely

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