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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. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  3. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  6. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  7. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  15. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  16. It's one o'clock ________________.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  23. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  24. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. rock — to move gently
  3. rule — a law
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. sharp — with an edge
  6. rule — government
  7. fine — high quality
  8. clip — a video
  9. degree — temperature
  10. rock — music
  11. clip — for paper
  12. row — a line
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. rock — a stone
  15. fine — a penalty
  16. sharp — exactly
  17. row — to paddle
  18. sharp — clever
  19. clip — to cut
  20. lash — a whip stroke
  21. degree — from a university
  22. lash — an eyelash
  23. fine — all right
  24. lash — to lash out

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