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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 120 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 ________________ up on opposing sides.
  2. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  18. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  19. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  20. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — past of 'wind'
  2. wound — an injury
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. prune — to trim
  5. hand — in cards
  6. degree — an amount
  7. bowl — a football final
  8. hand — help
  9. prune — to trim
  10. race — a contest
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. lie — to recline
  13. race — humankind
  14. shower — to wash
  15. degree — from a university
  16. degree — temperature
  17. bowl — a dish
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. bowl — to roll
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. race — the arms race
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. shower — rain
  24. wound — an injury

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