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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. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  9. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  14. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  17. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  18. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  19. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. lean — to rest against
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. club — for dancing
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. degree — from a university
  7. bat — the animal
  8. bear — the animal
  9. club — for golf
  10. spring — the season
  11. lean — to bend
  12. spring — a coil
  13. bear — to put up with
  14. cue — a hint
  15. club — a group
  16. present — the time now
  17. lean — thin
  18. present — there
  19. cue — a signal
  20. degree — temperature
  21. degree — an amount
  22. bear — the animal
  23. spring — of water
  24. cue — for pool

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