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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: chip · ball · perch · scale · bat · bowl · cold · fork

  1. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  2. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  3. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  6. The King held a masked ________________.
  7. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  8. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  12. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  17. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  18. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  19. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  20. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  21. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  24. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a round shape
  2. fork — a garden tool
  3. fork — in a road
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. chip — to eat
  6. ball — a dance
  7. bowl — a football final
  8. scale — for weighing
  9. scale — size or range
  10. cold — not warm
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. fork — to eat with
  13. cold — an illness
  14. bat — the animal
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. perch — the fish
  17. ball — a great time
  18. bowl — to roll
  19. bowl — a dish
  20. scale — in music
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. chip — in a computer
  24. chip — for betting

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