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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: chip · dip · kid · degree · current · lie · mug · march

  1. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. Where did you ________________ them?
  4. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  5. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  6. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  9. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  10. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  16. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  17. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  18. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  19. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  20. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  24. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — a sauce
  2. march — the month
  3. mug — to rob
  4. lie — to recline
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. current — of water
  7. degree — temperature
  8. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  9. dip — to sink
  10. chip — in a computer
  11. degree — from a university
  12. chip — to eat
  13. kid — to tease
  14. march — music
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. current — happening now
  17. mug — a face
  18. dip — to dunk
  19. mug — a cup
  20. kid — child
  21. march — the month
  22. degree — an amount
  23. current — electric
  24. chip — for betting

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