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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. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  4. We're almost out of ________________.
  5. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  6. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  10. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  11. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  16. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  17. You don't need to ________________ round.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. It's one o'clock ________________.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  22. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. What do you think of the new ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. degree — an amount
  3. fan — to cool the air
  4. pop — soda
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. pop — music
  7. land — ground
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. present — the time now
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. cabinet — a cupboard
  12. degree — temperature
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. wind — moving air
  15. present — there
  16. sharp — clever
  17. pop — to visit
  18. land — to come down
  19. sharp — exactly
  20. degree — from a university
  21. present — a gift
  22. sharp — with an edge
  23. land — a country
  24. cabinet — ministers

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