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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 120 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 the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  4. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  9. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  13. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  14. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  15. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  18. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  19. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  20. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  21. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  22. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — the season
  2. degree — temperature
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. present — the time now
  5. degree — an amount
  6. kid — to tease
  7. field — farmland
  8. vault — an arched ceiling
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. degree — from a university
  12. vault — in gymnastics
  13. fall — to drop
  14. vault — a safe
  15. racket — a loud noise
  16. field — for sport
  17. perch — the fish
  18. fall — to drop
  19. present — there
  20. present — a gift
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. kid — child
  24. field — a subject

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