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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. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  7. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  8. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. Have you met the new head ________________?
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  22. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. safe — a strongbox
  3. tear — to rip
  4. safe — out of danger
  5. degree — an amount
  6. face — to confront
  7. rock — music
  8. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  9. game — a match
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. face — part of the head
  12. tear — from crying
  13. rock — to move gently
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. degree — from a university
  17. face — to point toward
  18. kid — child
  19. coach — pulled by horses
  20. kid — to tease
  21. rock — a stone
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. tear — from crying
  24. degree — temperature

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