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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. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  4. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  11. When was this ________________ built?
  12. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  19. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. shower — to wash
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. fine — all right
  5. degree — an amount
  6. bear — to put up with
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. game — a match
  9. degree — from a university
  10. jam — a tight spot
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. fine — a penalty
  13. field — for sport
  14. field — a subject
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. bear — the animal
  17. shower — rain
  18. jam — in traffic
  19. temple — side of the head
  20. field — farmland
  21. jam — to spread on bread
  22. game — wild animals
  23. fine — high quality
  24. degree — temperature

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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