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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 116 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. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  2. Did you ________________ the meat?
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  5. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  14. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. That must've been a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. season — to add flavour
  3. rest — a break
  4. season — in sport
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. rest — what's left
  7. rush — hurry
  8. clip — for paper
  9. degree — from a university
  10. degree — an amount
  11. season — of the year
  12. clip — a video
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. racket — a loud noise
  15. degree — temperature
  16. rush — to hurry
  17. clip — to cut
  18. rush — a thrill

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