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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 room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  8. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. Did you ________________ the meat?
  14. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  17. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  18. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  21. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  24. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — completely
  2. shower — to wash
  3. pound — a weight
  4. season — of the year
  5. kid — child
  6. degree — temperature
  7. wave — a sudden rise
  8. pound — to hit hard
  9. degree — from a university
  10. season — in sport
  11. shower — rain
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. season — to add flavour
  14. pound — for dogs
  15. degree — an amount
  16. pitch — a sports field
  17. branch — of a bank
  18. branch — a division
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. wave — of the sea
  21. wave — with your hand
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. pitch — a sales talk
  24. kid — to tease

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