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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. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  8. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  9. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  12. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  15. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. degree — temperature
  3. stick — to attach or keep to
  4. court — for sport
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. board — to get on
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. track — a path
  10. tear — from crying
  11. track — a song
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. court — of law
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. track — to keep track
  16. degree — an amount
  17. tear — to rip
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. board — a flat piece
  20. bat — the animal
  21. degree — from a university
  22. court — of a king
  23. tear — from crying
  24. board — a committee

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