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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. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  3. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  4. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  5. The ________________ market has crashed.
  6. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  9. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  10. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  11. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  16. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  17. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  18. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  23. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. stock — a soup base
  4. scale — for weighing
  5. stock — shares
  6. chip — for betting
  7. degree — an amount
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. chip — in a computer
  10. bowl — to roll
  11. hide — animal skin
  12. cell — a phone
  13. stock — goods
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. chip — to eat
  16. lie — to recline
  17. scale — size or range
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. cell — in biology
  20. bowl — a dish
  21. scale — in music
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. bowl — a football final
  24. degree — temperature

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