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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.

Words on the sheet
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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 · mine · chip · bowl · band · chest · perch · mug

  1. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. Where did you ________________ them?
  4. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  5. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  8. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  20. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. mug — to rob
  4. mug — a cup
  5. chip — to eat
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. bowl — a football final
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. chip — for betting
  11. chest — of your body
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. degree — an amount
  14. band — a ring
  15. degree — temperature
  16. chest — a box
  17. chip — in a computer
  18. chest — of your body
  19. bowl — to roll
  20. mine — for digging
  21. band — a music group
  22. mug — a face
  23. degree — from a university
  24. perch — the fish

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