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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. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  2. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  3. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  6. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  7. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. Have you met the new head ________________?
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  22. How do you ________________ your surname?
  23. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. object — a thing
  2. spell — a short time
  3. object — to protest
  4. degree — an amount
  5. chip — in a computer
  6. chip — to eat
  7. object — an aim
  8. net — after costs
  9. spell — magic
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. degree — from a university
  12. rock — a stone
  13. degree — temperature
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. cold — an illness
  16. rock — to move gently
  17. net — for catching
  18. rock — music
  19. cold — not warm
  20. net — in sport
  21. coach — pulled by horses
  22. spell — letters
  23. chip — for betting
  24. cold — the Cold War

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