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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. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  2. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  3. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  8. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  9. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  10. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  20. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  21. Have you found your soul ________________?
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?

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

Answer key

  1. present — the time now
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. fan — to cool the air
  4. kid — to tease
  5. mate — a friend
  6. degree — an amount
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. face — to point toward
  9. present — a gift
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. degree — from a university
  12. degree — temperature
  13. face — to confront
  14. face — part of the head
  15. bat — the animal
  16. present — there
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. racket — a loud noise
  20. mate — to breed
  21. mate — a partner
  22. kid — child
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. fan — a supporter

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