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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. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. What do you think of the new ________________?
  5. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  22. Have you found your soul ________________?
  23. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  24. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.

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

Answer key

  1. lie — to recline
  2. degree — temperature
  3. field — a subject
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. cabinet — a cupboard
  6. field — for sport
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. degree — an amount
  10. game — a match
  11. mate — to breed
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. game — wild animals
  14. mate — a friend
  15. field — farmland
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. shower — to wash
  19. degree — from a university
  20. shower — rain
  21. pitch — a sports field
  22. mate — a partner
  23. pitch — completely
  24. lie — an untruth

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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