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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: mark · season · object · lean · chip · pitcher · degree · patient

  1. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  6. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  7. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  8. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  9. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  10. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  11. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  14. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  15. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  16. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  17. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  18. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  19. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  20. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  24. There's a computer ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. degree — from a university
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. season — of the year
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. lean — to bend
  7. chip — to eat
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. object — an aim
  11. mark — a grade
  12. degree — an amount
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. lean — to rest against
  15. chip — for betting
  16. lean — thin
  17. mark — a trace
  18. patient — calm and waiting
  19. mark — to pay attention
  20. object — to protest
  21. season — in sport
  22. degree — temperature
  23. object — a thing
  24. chip — in a computer

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