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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. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  4. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  15. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  21. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. degree — temperature
  3. bear — to put up with
  4. firm — steady
  5. degree — from a university
  6. spell — letters
  7. rash — hasty
  8. bear — the animal
  9. rash — a series
  10. spell — a short time
  11. ground — crushed
  12. firm — a company
  13. clip — to cut
  14. bear — the animal
  15. ground — the earth
  16. spell — magic
  17. racket — a loud noise
  18. degree — an amount
  19. clip — for paper
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. firm — decided
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. clip — a video
  24. ground — a position

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