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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. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. When will it ________________ you to start?
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. Don't do anything ________________.
  13. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  14. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  17. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  18. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  19. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. suit — clothes
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. rock — a stone
  5. degree — temperature
  6. tear — from crying
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. suit — to fit
  9. degree — an amount
  10. rash — a series
  11. tear — to rip
  12. rash — hasty
  13. wave — of the sea
  14. wave — a sudden rise
  15. tear — from crying
  16. pound — to hit hard
  17. rock — to move gently
  18. wave — with your hand
  19. pound — for dogs
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. suit — in cards
  23. degree — from a university
  24. pound — a weight

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