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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 124 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 girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  2. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  5. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  9. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  10. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  16. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  20. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a line
  2. rule — to rule out
  3. mate — a partner
  4. fall — to drop
  5. mate — to breed
  6. row — to paddle
  7. kid — to tease
  8. fall — the season
  9. rule — a law
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. perch — the fish
  12. degree — temperature
  13. degree — from a university
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. fall — to drop
  17. mate — a friend
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. degree — an amount
  22. rule — government
  23. kid — child
  24. stick — to attach or keep to

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