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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 120 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 lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  7. The King held a masked ________________.
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  15. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — with your hand
  2. degree — an amount
  3. hand — help
  4. wave — of the sea
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. ball — a great time
  7. ball — a dance
  8. race — a contest
  9. race — the arms race
  10. hand — in cards
  11. season — of the year
  12. wave — a sudden rise
  13. degree — temperature
  14. season — in sport
  15. ball — a round shape
  16. race — humankind
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. degree — from a university

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