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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. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  2. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  16. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  19. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  20. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  21. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  22. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  23. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  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. leaves — to go away
  2. board — to get on
  3. track — a path
  4. clip — a video
  5. chip — to eat
  6. degree — an amount
  7. chip — in a computer
  8. clip — for paper
  9. foot — a measure
  10. degree — from a university
  11. board — a flat piece
  12. chest — of your body
  13. track — to keep track
  14. chest — of your body
  15. track — a song
  16. leaves — of a tree
  17. clip — to cut
  18. chest — a box
  19. foot — the bottom
  20. foot — part of the body
  21. leaves — lets stay
  22. board — a committee
  23. chip — for betting
  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