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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.

Make a worksheet

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: game · chip · current · degree · date · tube

  1. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  2. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  4. I'll be taking the ________________.
  5. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  11. Have you settled on a ________________?
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  14. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  15. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  16. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  17. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  18. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. current — of water
  4. tube — the underground
  5. date — the fruit
  6. degree — temperature
  7. current — happening now
  8. game — wild animals
  9. degree — from a university
  10. chip — to eat
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. degree — an amount
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. tube — a container
  15. chip — for betting
  16. current — electric
  17. chip — in a computer
  18. game — a match

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