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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. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  11. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  12. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  19. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  20. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  23. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — for betting
  2. field — a subject
  3. chip — to eat
  4. squash — to crush
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. row — a line
  8. chip — in a computer
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. scale — size or range
  11. mark — a grade
  12. scale — for weighing
  13. row — to paddle
  14. squash — the sport
  15. scale — in music
  16. field — farmland
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. mark — to pay attention
  20. mark — a trace
  21. bark — to shout
  22. bark — a dog's sound
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. field — for 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