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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 ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  2. We're almost out of ________________.
  3. You don't need to ________________ round.
  4. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. When was this ________________ built?
  8. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  9. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  12. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  13. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  14. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  17. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. I can't ________________ this cold.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. lie — an untruth
  2. pop — soda
  3. pop — to visit
  4. lie — to recline
  5. degree — from a university
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. temple — a place of worship
  10. kid — child
  11. prune — to trim
  12. temple — side of the head
  13. prune — to trim
  14. pop — music
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. stand — for spectators
  17. stand — on your feet
  18. clip — to cut
  19. stand — to bear
  20. clip — a video
  21. kid — to tease
  22. clip — for paper
  23. degree — an amount
  24. degree — temperature

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