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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. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  6. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  9. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  13. It's one o'clock ________________.
  14. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  15. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. That was ________________ to happen.
  21. Did you ________________ the meat?
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. deal — a big deal
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. kid — child
  5. vault — a safe
  6. bound — tied together
  7. degree — temperature
  8. sharp — with an edge
  9. deal — an agreement
  10. degree — an amount
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. deal — to handle
  13. sharp — exactly
  14. vault — an arched ceiling
  15. bound — obliged
  16. degree — from a university
  17. sharp — clever
  18. wake — a trail
  19. kid — to tease
  20. bound — certain
  21. season — to add flavour
  22. season — of the year
  23. season — in sport
  24. vault — in gymnastics

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