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

Word bank: club · chip · degree · mine · cell · bay

  1. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  2. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  3. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  4. My mare is ________________ in color.
  5. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  14. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. chip — to eat
  2. club — for dancing
  3. club — a group
  4. bay — a horse colour
  5. bay — a part of the sea
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. degree — an amount
  8. cell — in biology
  9. chip — in a computer
  10. degree — from a university
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. bay — to keep at bay
  14. chip — for betting
  15. mine — for digging
  16. club — for golf
  17. degree — temperature
  18. cell — a phone

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