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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 120 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. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. What do you think of the new ________________?
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  7. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  8. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  9. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  12. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  19. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  20. He is an ace ________________.
  21. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  22. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  23. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  24. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. mouse — for a computer
  3. squash — the sport
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. degree — an amount
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. wave — with your hand
  8. bore — gave birth
  9. cabinet — a cupboard
  10. mine — for digging
  11. wave — a sudden rise
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. degree — temperature
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. mouse — the animal
  19. squash — to crush
  20. pitcher — in baseball
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. bore — to tire
  23. wave — of the sea
  24. bore — to drill

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