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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: mine · squash · calf · degree · chip · present · roll · tear

  1. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  6. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  12. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  13. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  14. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  18. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  19. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. We're on a ________________ here.
  24. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?

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

Answer key

  1. chip — in a computer
  2. tear — from crying
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. chip — to eat
  7. mine — for digging
  8. degree — temperature
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. present — there
  12. present — the time now
  13. roll — a cake
  14. roll — a list
  15. tear — from crying
  16. degree — from a university
  17. calf — of the leg
  18. chip — for betting
  19. squash — to crush
  20. tear — to rip
  21. degree — an amount
  22. squash — the sport
  23. roll — on a roll
  24. present — a gift

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