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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. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  2. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  3. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  4. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  5. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  8. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  19. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — high quality
  2. fine — a penalty
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. bore — gave birth
  6. degree — temperature
  7. fine — all right
  8. toast — a drink to someone
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. toast — bread
  12. mine — for digging
  13. kid — to tease
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. kid — child
  16. game — wild animals
  17. degree — from a university
  18. bore — to tire
  19. toast — the most admired
  20. game — a match
  21. bore — to drill
  22. degree — an amount
  23. calf — of the leg
  24. game — a kind of play

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