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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. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  3. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  4. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  5. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  6. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  7. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  11. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  19. When are we going to ________________?
  20. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  24. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. staff — a stick
  3. drill — a practice
  4. swing — music
  5. bear — the animal
  6. safe — out of danger
  7. staff — employees
  8. swing — to play on
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. safe — a strongbox
  11. bear — to put up with
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. degree — from a university
  15. drill — army training
  16. land — ground
  17. land — a country
  18. drill — the tool
  19. land — to come down
  20. staff — employees
  21. degree — temperature
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. swing — in golf
  24. bear — the animal

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