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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: mug · hide · date · degree · scale · trunk · chip · chair

  1. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. Where did you ________________ them?
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  13. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. Have you settled on a ________________?
  16. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  17. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  20. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  21. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  22. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  23. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  24. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. degree — an amount
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. trunk — of an elephant
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. degree — from a university
  8. chip — for betting
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. mug — to rob
  11. degree — temperature
  12. scale — size or range
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. chair — a leader
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. chip — to eat
  17. mug — a face
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. scale — in music
  20. chair — a professorship
  21. mug — a cup
  22. date — the fruit
  23. chip — in a computer
  24. hide — animal skin

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