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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: degree · sharp · stock · bass · chip · wind · lie · board

  1. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  4. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  5. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  8. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  9. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  12. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  13. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  14. It's one o'clock ________________.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  17. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  18. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  22. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. The ________________ market has crashed.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. wind — moving air
  3. chip — to eat
  4. sharp — with an edge
  5. board — a committee
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. bass — the instrument
  8. chip — in a computer
  9. board — to get on
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. board — a flat piece
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. lie — to recline
  14. sharp — exactly
  15. degree — an amount
  16. bass — low music
  17. stock — goods
  18. bass — the fish
  19. degree — from a university
  20. degree — temperature
  21. chip — for betting
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. wind — moving air
  24. stock — shares

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