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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 116 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: degree · chair · swing · mouse · straw · cap · chip · vault

  1. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  7. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  10. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  15. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  23. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — to eat
  2. degree — temperature
  3. cap — a hat
  4. swing — in golf
  5. degree — an amount
  6. vault — a safe
  7. chip — in a computer
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. mouse — for a computer
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. swing — to play on
  12. chair — a leader
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. chip — for betting
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. vault — an arched ceiling
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. cap — of ice
  21. degree — from a university
  22. vault — in gymnastics
  23. cap — a lid
  24. swing — music

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