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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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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 · bowl · mark · file · row · degree · arm · cold

  1. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  5. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  8. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. My father caught me by the ________________.
  16. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  22. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  23. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  24. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. row — to paddle
  2. degree — temperature
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. chip — to eat
  5. mark — a grade
  6. cold — not warm
  7. file — a document
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. file — a line of people
  10. degree — an amount
  11. chip — for betting
  12. row — a line
  13. bowl — a football final
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. bowl — to roll
  17. file — a tool
  18. cold — an illness
  19. bowl — a dish
  20. degree — from a university
  21. arm — a part of something
  22. chip — in a computer
  23. mark — to pay attention
  24. mark — a trace

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