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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: ground · degree · last · chip · bay · kid · cap · patient

  1. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  4. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  12. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  20. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  23. My mare is ________________ in color.
  24. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — the earth
  2. kid — to tease
  3. chip — to eat
  4. cap — of ice
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. ground — crushed
  8. last — final
  9. degree — from a university
  10. kid — child
  11. chip — for betting
  12. chip — in a computer
  13. last — finally
  14. bay — to keep at bay
  15. degree — temperature
  16. cap — a hat
  17. ground — a position
  18. last — to go on
  19. cap — a lid
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. degree — an amount
  22. bay — a part of the sea
  23. bay — a horse colour
  24. patient — calm and waiting

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