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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.

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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: land · game · present · snap · chip · lie · pitch · degree

  1. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  3. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  7. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  11. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  18. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  19. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. The players ran onto the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. present — the time now
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. game — wild animals
  5. present — a gift
  6. chip — for betting
  7. snap — to click
  8. degree — temperature
  9. game — a match
  10. pitch — completely
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. land — a country
  13. chip — in a computer
  14. degree — from a university
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. pitch — a sales talk
  18. lie — to recline
  19. present — there
  20. land — ground
  21. land — to come down
  22. chip — to eat
  23. degree — an amount
  24. pitch — a sports field

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