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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  2. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  5. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  6. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  7. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  10. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. David sat on the ________________.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  17. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  18. I assure you, everything's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — high quality
  2. pitch — a sales talk
  3. degree — temperature
  4. fine — a penalty
  5. swing — in golf
  6. pitch — completely
  7. pitch — a sports field
  8. degree — an amount
  9. rule — to rule out
  10. rule — government
  11. spring — the season
  12. degree — from a university
  13. spring — of water
  14. swing — to play on
  15. spring — a coil
  16. swing — music
  17. rule — a law
  18. fine — all right

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