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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. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  4. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  7. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  15. The King held a masked ________________.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  20. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  24. What do you think of the new ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. degree — temperature
  3. ball — a great time
  4. cabinet — a cupboard
  5. degree — from a university
  6. wake — to stop sleeping
  7. present — there
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. wake — a trail
  10. mine — for digging
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. degree — an amount
  14. mouse — for a computer
  15. ball — a dance
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. ball — a round shape
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. present — the time now
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. present — a gift
  24. cabinet — ministers

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