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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. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  9. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  10. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  11. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  12. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  13. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  14. David sat on the ________________.
  15. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  16. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  23. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  24. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. kid — child
  3. wound — an injury
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. safe — out of danger
  7. degree — an amount
  8. wave — with your hand
  9. wave — of the sea
  10. wave — a sudden rise
  11. wake — a trail
  12. swing — music
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. swing — to play on
  15. wake — to stop sleeping
  16. safe — out of danger
  17. kid — to tease
  18. perch — the fish
  19. swing — in golf
  20. degree — temperature
  21. wound — an injury
  22. safe — a strongbox
  23. wound — past of 'wind'
  24. degree — from a university

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