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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. You don't need to ________________ round.
  2. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  4. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  5. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  6. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  7. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. We're almost out of ________________.
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  14. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  15. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. She's very handy with a ________________.
  20. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  21. He works in a ________________ mill.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — to visit
  2. mate — a friend
  3. saw — past of 'see'
  4. pop — music
  5. mate — to breed
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. ruler — for measuring
  8. mate — a partner
  9. ruler — a monarch
  10. degree — temperature
  11. pop — soda
  12. wound — an injury
  13. calf — of the leg
  14. dip — to sink
  15. dip — to dunk
  16. wound — an injury
  17. dip — a sauce
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. saw — the tool
  20. ruler — for measuring
  21. saw — the tool
  22. degree — an amount
  23. degree — from a university
  24. calf — a young animal

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