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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. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  6. The light ________________ burned out.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  10. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  13. I've got to change the light ________________.
  14. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  19. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  20. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. land — to come down
  3. craft — boats
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. stick — to attach or keep to
  6. bulb — for light
  7. game — wild animals
  8. kid — child
  9. vault — in gymnastics
  10. vault — an arched ceiling
  11. land — a country
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. bulb — for light
  14. craft — a handicraft
  15. degree — an amount
  16. craft — a skill
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. kid — to tease
  19. bulb — of a plant
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. game — a match
  22. degree — temperature
  23. land — ground
  24. vault — a safe

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