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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. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  2. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  3. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  4. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  5. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  13. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  14. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  17. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  18. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  22. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. squash — to crush
  3. can — a tin
  4. fall — to drop
  5. fine — all right
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. game — a match
  8. rest — what's left
  9. degree — temperature
  10. rest — a break
  11. kid — to tease
  12. rest — what's left
  13. fine — a penalty
  14. fall — the season
  15. degree — from a university
  16. squash — the vegetable
  17. can — to be able to
  18. squash — the sport
  19. kid — child
  20. degree — an amount
  21. fine — high quality
  22. fall — to drop
  23. game — a kind of play
  24. game — wild animals

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