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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 ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  17. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. My mare is ________________ in color.
  20. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  21. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  22. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  23. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  24. I'd like to play a game of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. toast — the most admired
  4. degree — from a university
  5. mine — for digging
  6. fall — the season
  7. kick — a thrill
  8. squash — to crush
  9. bay — to keep at bay
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. fall — to drop
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. degree — an amount
  14. degree — temperature
  15. fall — to drop
  16. toast — a drink to someone
  17. kick — with a leg
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. bay — a horse colour
  20. squash — the vegetable
  21. kick — in football
  22. toast — bread
  23. bay — a part of the sea
  24. squash — the sport

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