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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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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: sharp · race · date · kick · chip · toast · degree · current

  1. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  2. It's one o'clock ________________.
  3. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  6. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  7. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  13. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  14. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. Have you settled on a ________________?
  17. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  20. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  21. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  22. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — in football
  2. sharp — exactly
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. race — humankind
  5. chip — in a computer
  6. race — a contest
  7. date — the fruit
  8. degree — from a university
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. kick — a thrill
  11. degree — temperature
  12. current — of water
  13. current — electric
  14. sharp — clever
  15. race — the arms race
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. toast — the most admired
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. chip — to eat
  20. toast — bread
  21. toast — a drink to someone
  22. current — happening now
  23. degree — an amount
  24. chip — for betting

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