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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. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  5. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  8. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  9. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. Did you ________________ the button?
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  23. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  24. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. squash — to crush
  3. degree — temperature
  4. press — newspapers
  5. snap — to click
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. squash — the sport
  9. press — a publisher
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. degree — an amount
  12. kid — to tease
  13. press — to push
  14. tear — from crying
  15. snap — to speak sharply
  16. capital — money
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. calf — of the leg
  19. kid — child
  20. capital — a city
  21. tear — from crying
  22. snap — to snap out of it
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. degree — from a university

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