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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. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  5. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  9. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  13. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  14. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  17. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  18. My mare is ________________ in color.
  19. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. David sat on the ________________.
  24. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. swing — music
  3. degree — temperature
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. can — to be able to
  6. last — to go on
  7. last — finally
  8. bay — to keep at bay
  9. can — a tin
  10. degree — an amount
  11. last — final
  12. bay — a part of the sea
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. fine — high quality
  15. tear — from crying
  16. racket — a loud noise
  17. swing — in golf
  18. bay — a horse colour
  19. can — a tin
  20. tear — to rip
  21. fine — all right
  22. tear — from crying
  23. swing — to play on
  24. fine — a penalty

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