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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. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  2. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  3. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  4. I can't ________________ this cold.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  8. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  9. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  10. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  13. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  14. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. Have you found your soul ________________?
  18. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  23. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  24. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. object — an aim
  2. object — a thing
  3. pound — for dogs
  4. stand — to bear
  5. degree — temperature
  6. field — a subject
  7. pound — to hit hard
  8. mate — to breed
  9. object — to protest
  10. mate — a friend
  11. field — for sport
  12. stand — on your feet
  13. stand — for spectators
  14. rule — to rule out
  15. field — farmland
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. mate — a partner
  18. rule — government
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. degree — an amount
  22. rule — a law
  23. pound — a weight
  24. degree — from a university

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