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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. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  19. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  20. He is an ace ________________.
  21. There's no middle ________________.
  22. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. wind — moving air
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. ground — the earth
  6. bore — to drill
  7. tube — the underground
  8. tear — from crying
  9. face — to confront
  10. bore — gave birth
  11. face — part of the head
  12. degree — from a university
  13. tube — a container
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. tear — from crying
  16. bore — to tire
  17. tear — to rip
  18. face — to point toward
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. pitcher — in baseball
  21. ground — a position
  22. ground — crushed
  23. wind — moving air
  24. degree — an amount

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