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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.

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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: wake · safe · chip · degree · bat · tube · ball · mark

  1. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  5. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  8. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  9. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  10. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  11. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  12. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  13. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  14. I'll be taking the ________________.
  15. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  16. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  17. The King held a masked ________________.
  18. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  22. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  23. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  24. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. degree — from a university
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. mark — a grade
  5. chip — for betting
  6. bat — the animal
  7. ball — a great time
  8. safe — a strongbox
  9. chip — in a computer
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. wake — a trail
  12. mark — to pay attention
  13. tube — in a tire
  14. tube — the underground
  15. wake — before a funeral
  16. wake — to stop sleeping
  17. ball — a dance
  18. ball — a round shape
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. degree — temperature
  21. chip — to eat
  22. tube — a container
  23. safe — out of danger
  24. mark — a trace

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