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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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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 ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. We're almost out of ________________.
  6. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  9. You don't need to ________________ round.
  10. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  13. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  14. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  15. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  19. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  22. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  23. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  24. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. degree — an amount
  3. degree — from a university
  4. bat — the animal
  5. pop — soda
  6. deal — to handle
  7. rash — a series
  8. club — for golf
  9. pop — to visit
  10. rest — what's left
  11. rash — hasty
  12. deal — an agreement
  13. lash — to lash out
  14. club — for dancing
  15. rest — a break
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. rest — what's left
  19. lash — a whip stroke
  20. degree — temperature
  21. lash — an eyelash
  22. club — a group
  23. pop — music
  24. deal — a big deal

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