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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.

Make a worksheet

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
468
Word bank
YesNo
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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: can · plane · kid · chip · degree · bark · fan · rock

  1. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  3. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  4. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  9. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  10. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  11. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  14. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  20. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  24. The ________________ took off on time.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. chip — for betting
  4. plane — a tool
  5. degree — from a university
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. chip — to eat
  9. plane — in geometry
  10. chip — in a computer
  11. rock — to move gently
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. can — to be able to
  14. rock — a stone
  15. degree — temperature
  16. degree — an amount
  17. fan — to cool the air
  18. bark — to shout
  19. rock — music
  20. can — a tin
  21. kid — to tease
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. can — a tin
  24. plane — an aircraft

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