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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 haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  4. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  8. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  9. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  14. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. We're on a ________________ here.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  20. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  21. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  22. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  23. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  24. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. degree — from a university
  3. bear — the animal
  4. pitch — a sales talk
  5. degree — an amount
  6. race — the arms race
  7. bore — to tire
  8. roll — a list
  9. bore — to drill
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. bear — to put up with
  12. race — humankind
  13. racket — a loud noise
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. degree — temperature
  17. roll — on a roll
  18. mine — for digging
  19. roll — a cake
  20. pitch — a sports field
  21. bore — gave birth
  22. bear — the animal
  23. race — a contest
  24. pitch — completely

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