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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. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  15. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  18. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  19. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  20. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  21. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  24. I'd like to play a game of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. degree — temperature
  3. last — final
  4. face — to point toward
  5. last — finally
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. squash — the vegetable
  8. degree — an amount
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. deal — to handle
  11. face — part of the head
  12. face — to confront
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. bowl — to roll
  15. chip — for betting
  16. degree — from a university
  17. squash — to crush
  18. bowl — a football final
  19. chip — to eat
  20. deal — an agreement
  21. chip — in a computer
  22. last — to go on
  23. deal — a big deal
  24. squash — the sport

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