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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. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. That must've been a ________________.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  7. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  8. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. My father caught me by the ________________.
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  19. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  20. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  21. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  22. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  23. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  24. We have nothing to ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. arm — a part of something
  3. tear — from crying
  4. rush — a thrill
  5. degree — an amount
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. hide — animal skin
  8. deal — a big deal
  9. tear — from crying
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. tear — to rip
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. deal — to handle
  15. perch — the fish
  16. fork — in a road
  17. degree — temperature
  18. rush — to hurry
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. fork — to eat with
  21. fork — a garden tool
  22. deal — an agreement
  23. rush — hurry
  24. hide — to keep secret

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