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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 116 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. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. Where did you ________________ them?
  3. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  10. That was ________________ to happen.
  11. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  19. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. mug — to rob
  3. bound — tied together
  4. game — a match
  5. bat — the animal
  6. mug — a face
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. land — a country
  9. hide — animal skin
  10. bound — certain
  11. safe — out of danger
  12. game — wild animals
  13. safe — a strongbox
  14. land — ground
  15. degree — from a university
  16. safe — out of danger
  17. land — to come down
  18. mug — a cup
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. degree — temperature
  23. bound — obliged
  24. bat — for baseball

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