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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. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  2. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  4. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  5. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  10. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  15. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  16. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — part of the body
  2. present — a gift
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. racket — a loud noise
  5. foot — part of the body
  6. hand — help
  7. rule — to rule out
  8. hand — in cards
  9. foot — the bottom
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. degree — from a university
  12. present — the time now
  13. degree — an amount
  14. foot — a measure
  15. rule — a law
  16. rule — government
  17. present — there
  18. degree — temperature

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