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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: game · degree · bat · chip · charge · kid · bowl · bank

  1. The tickets are free of ________________.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  6. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  10. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  11. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  21. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  22. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — a price
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. bank — for money
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. bowl — to roll
  6. bank — for money
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. kid — child
  9. chip — for betting
  10. charge — electricity
  11. bank — of a river
  12. degree — temperature
  13. bat — the animal
  14. degree — an amount
  15. charge — in control
  16. kid — to tease
  17. game — a match
  18. bowl — a dish
  19. game — wild animals
  20. chip — to eat
  21. chip — in a computer
  22. bowl — a football final
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. degree — from a university

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