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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: ball · bat · field · chip · press · perch · pop · dip

  1. The King held a masked ________________.
  2. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  3. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  4. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  7. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  8. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  9. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  10. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. You don't need to ________________ round.
  19. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  22. We're almost out of ________________.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a dance
  2. perch — the fish
  3. chip — to eat
  4. dip — to dunk
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. ball — a great time
  7. press — newspapers
  8. dip — to sink
  9. ball — a round shape
  10. chip — for betting
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. pop — music
  13. chip — in a computer
  14. field — a subject
  15. field — for sport
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. field — farmland
  18. pop — to visit
  19. dip — a sauce
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. press — a publisher
  22. pop — soda
  23. bat — the animal
  24. press — to push

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