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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. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  2. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  3. We're almost out of ________________.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. You don't need to ________________ round.
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  10. Have you met the new head ________________?
  11. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  19. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — pulled by horses
  2. chip — for betting
  3. pop — soda
  4. degree — temperature
  5. pop — to visit
  6. file — a document
  7. sharp — with an edge
  8. net — after costs
  9. pop — music
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. root — of a word
  12. file — a tool
  13. root — of a plant
  14. degree — an amount
  15. net — in sport
  16. degree — from a university
  17. file — a line of people
  18. chip — in a computer
  19. root — the cause
  20. sharp — clever
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. net — for catching
  24. chip — to eat

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