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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 120 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. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  2. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. When was this ________________ built?
  5. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  9. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  10. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  11. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  16. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  17. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. My father caught me by the ________________.
  24. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — to eat
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. dip — to sink
  6. tear — from crying
  7. degree — temperature
  8. dip — to dunk
  9. arm — a part of something
  10. chip — for betting
  11. temple — side of the head
  12. clip — for paper
  13. degree — from a university
  14. clip — a video
  15. dip — a sauce
  16. chip — in a computer
  17. bowl — a football final
  18. degree — an amount
  19. clip — to cut
  20. tear — to rip
  21. bowl — to roll
  22. tear — from crying
  23. arm — part of the body
  24. arm — part of the body

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