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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. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. My father caught me by the ________________.
  5. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  6. The light ________________ burned out.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. I've got to change the light ________________.
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. content — videos and posts
  2. degree — temperature
  3. squash — the sport
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. bulb — of a plant
  6. bulb — for light
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. ground — a position
  9. squash — to crush
  10. ground — crushed
  11. content — happy
  12. degree — from a university
  13. bulb — for light
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. content — the amount
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. squash — the vegetable
  20. ground — the earth
  21. degree — an amount
  22. wind — moving air
  23. arm — a part of something
  24. wind — moving air

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