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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 hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  2. I'll be taking the ________________.
  3. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  7. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  10. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  11. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  12. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  13. He works in a ________________ mill.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. She's very handy with a ________________.
  19. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  20. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  21. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  22. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  23. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  24. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.

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

Answer key

  1. lie — to recline
  2. tube — the underground
  3. present — a gift
  4. degree — from a university
  5. ground — the earth
  6. present — there
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. ground — a position
  9. rock — a stone
  10. kick — with a leg
  11. rock — music
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. saw — the tool
  14. ground — crushed
  15. degree — an amount
  16. tube — a container
  17. degree — temperature
  18. saw — the tool
  19. kick — a thrill
  20. kick — in football
  21. present — the time now
  22. rock — to move gently
  23. tube — in a tire
  24. saw — past of 'see'

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