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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. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  2. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  7. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  10. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. That was ________________ to happen.
  17. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  18. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  22. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  23. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  24. The King held a masked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — to move gently
  2. wound — an injury
  3. degree — from a university
  4. spring — a coil
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. rock — music
  7. chair — to sit on
  8. degree — an amount
  9. ball — a great time
  10. squash — the sport
  11. spring — of water
  12. degree — temperature
  13. chair — a leader
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. squash — to crush
  16. bound — certain
  17. bound — tied together
  18. ball — a round shape
  19. wound — an injury
  20. spring — the season
  21. rock — a stone
  22. squash — the vegetable
  23. bound — obliged
  24. ball — a dance

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