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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: board · row · lean · chip · straw · pitcher · net · degree

  1. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  16. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  17. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  18. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  19. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  20. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  21. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. lean — thin
  3. degree — temperature
  4. chip — for betting
  5. net — in sport
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. chip — in a computer
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. net — for catching
  11. board — to get on
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. degree — an amount
  15. board — a committee
  16. board — a flat piece
  17. lean — to bend
  18. chip — to eat
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. net — after costs
  21. lean — to rest against
  22. degree — from a university
  23. row — a line
  24. row — to paddle

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