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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. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  3. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  4. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  5. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  9. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  10. We're on a ________________ here.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  15. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  22. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  23. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  24. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. pass — to succeed
  3. chip — to eat
  4. roll — a list
  5. safe — out of danger
  6. degree — from a university
  7. game — wild animals
  8. safe — a strongbox
  9. safe — out of danger
  10. roll — on a roll
  11. cold — not warm
  12. calf — of the leg
  13. degree — an amount
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. chip — in a computer
  16. game — a match
  17. chip — for betting
  18. degree — temperature
  19. pass — a permit
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. pass — to spend time
  22. game — a kind of play
  23. roll — a cake
  24. calf — a young animal

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