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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: squash · chip · fork · degree · drill · present

  1. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  2. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  3. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  4. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  5. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  6. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  7. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  11. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  12. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — to crush
  2. fork — to eat with
  3. squash — the vegetable
  4. chip — to eat
  5. drill — army training
  6. fork — a garden tool
  7. present — a gift
  8. degree — an amount
  9. degree — from a university
  10. chip — in a computer
  11. squash — the sport
  12. present — the time now
  13. drill — the tool
  14. drill — a practice
  15. fork — in a road
  16. present — there
  17. degree — temperature
  18. chip — for betting

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