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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 120 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.

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: degree · sharp · wound · fork · pitcher · rash · chip · snap

  1. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  5. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. Don't do anything ________________.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  15. It's one o'clock ________________.
  16. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  22. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  23. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  24. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. degree — temperature
  4. chip — in a computer
  5. chip — for betting
  6. wound — an injury
  7. degree — an amount
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. rash — hasty
  11. degree — from a university
  12. fork — a garden tool
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. chip — to eat
  15. sharp — exactly
  16. fork — in a road
  17. rash — a series
  18. rash — on the skin
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. fork — to eat with
  22. sharp — clever
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. wound — an injury

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