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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. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  2. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  8. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. The ________________ change colour in autumn.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — a weight
  2. racket — a loud noise
  3. kid — to tease
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. leaves — to go away
  6. degree — temperature
  7. pound — to hit hard
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. degree — an amount
  12. bat — the animal
  13. pound — for dogs
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. degree — from a university
  16. leaves — lets stay
  17. kid — child
  18. leaves — of a tree

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