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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: chip · degree · safe · last · fan · wake · mug · season

  1. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  2. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  12. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  13. Where did you ________________ them?
  14. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  18. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  19. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  20. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  21. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  22. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  23. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  24. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — for betting
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. last — final
  4. season — of the year
  5. fan — to cool the air
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. last — to go on
  8. degree — an amount
  9. last — finally
  10. degree — temperature
  11. mug — a cup
  12. mug — a face
  13. mug — to rob
  14. season — in sport
  15. wake — a trail
  16. degree — from a university
  17. safe — out of danger
  18. chip — to eat
  19. chip — in a computer
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. safe — a strongbox
  22. safe — out of danger
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. wake — to stop sleeping

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