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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. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  2. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  3. The King held a masked ________________.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  8. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  9. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  10. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  21. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  22. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a round shape
  2. pitch — a sports field
  3. ball — a dance
  4. degree — temperature
  5. bear — the animal
  6. wound — an injury
  7. bear — to put up with
  8. pitch — completely
  9. foot — part of the body
  10. kick — a thrill
  11. degree — an amount
  12. kick — with a leg
  13. wound — an injury
  14. net — after costs
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. foot — the bottom
  17. net — for catching
  18. foot — a measure
  19. degree — from a university
  20. kick — in football
  21. ball — a great time
  22. bear — the animal
  23. net — in sport
  24. pitch — a sales talk

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