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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 116 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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Word bank
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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. The water is too ________________.
  2. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  3. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  4. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  11. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  12. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  13. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  14. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  15. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  22. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. object — a thing
  3. scale — in music
  4. bowl — a dish
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. bowl — to roll
  7. game — a match
  8. cold — an illness
  9. game — wild animals
  10. bowl — a football final
  11. object — an aim
  12. bear — to put up with
  13. object — to protest
  14. scale — for weighing
  15. trunk — of a tree
  16. degree — from a university
  17. scale — size or range
  18. degree — an amount
  19. trunk — of an elephant
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. bear — the animal
  22. bear — the animal
  23. degree — temperature
  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