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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. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  2. The ________________ went through the wall.
  3. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  4. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  5. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  17. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  22. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  23. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  24. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — an agreement
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. chip — in a computer
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. deal — a big deal
  6. bat — the animal
  7. perch — the fish
  8. degree — from a university
  9. firm — decided
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. chip — to eat
  12. game — a match
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. degree — an amount
  15. degree — temperature
  16. firm — a company
  17. deal — to handle
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. game — wild animals
  21. firm — steady
  22. chip — for betting
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. nail — on a finger

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