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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. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  2. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  3. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  4. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  16. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  17. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  18. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  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. shower — rain
  2. deal — a big deal
  3. squash — to crush
  4. track — a song
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. lean — to rest against
  7. lean — to bend
  8. lean — thin
  9. squash — the sport
  10. degree — temperature
  11. degree — from a university
  12. deal — an agreement
  13. shower — to wash
  14. mate — a partner
  15. squash — the vegetable
  16. mate — a friend
  17. deal — to handle
  18. track — to keep track
  19. capital — a city
  20. capital — money
  21. mate — to breed
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. track — a path
  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