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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. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. My mare is ________________ in color.
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  18. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  19. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  20. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  24. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. file — a line of people
  4. bay — a horse colour
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. wound — an injury
  7. squash — to crush
  8. wound — an injury
  9. content — the amount
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. file — a document
  12. bay — a part of the sea
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. degree — from a university
  15. dip — a sauce
  16. dip — to sink
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. content — happy
  19. hide — animal skin
  20. squash — the sport
  21. file — a tool
  22. degree — temperature
  23. bay — to keep at bay
  24. dip — to dunk

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