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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. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  2. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  3. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  4. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  5. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  10. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  20. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  21. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. face — part of the head
  3. fine — high quality
  4. bear — to put up with
  5. pound — a weight
  6. degree — from a university
  7. race — humankind
  8. hand — in cards
  9. pound — to hit hard
  10. fine — all right
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. face — to confront
  14. degree — temperature
  15. face — to point toward
  16. wind — moving air
  17. bear — the animal
  18. degree — an amount
  19. pound — for dogs
  20. race — a contest
  21. fine — a penalty
  22. race — the arms race
  23. wind — moving air
  24. hand — help

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