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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: perch · race · court · chip · bulb · land · calf · dip

  1. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  2. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  3. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  4. I've got to change the light ________________.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  9. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  10. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  11. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  12. The light ________________ burned out.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  17. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  22. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  23. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. chip — to eat
  3. race — the arms race
  4. bulb — for light
  5. race — a contest
  6. dip — to dunk
  7. court — for sport
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. calf — of the leg
  10. bulb — of a plant
  11. dip — a sauce
  12. bulb — for light
  13. land — to come down
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. court — of law
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. chip — in a computer
  18. land — a country
  19. land — ground
  20. court — of a king
  21. perch — the fish
  22. dip — to sink
  23. chip — for betting
  24. race — humankind

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