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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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  6. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  10. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  13. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  14. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  20. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. wind — moving air
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. degree — temperature
  5. board — to get on
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. degree — an amount
  8. wind — moving air
  9. board — a flat piece
  10. stick — to attach or keep to
  11. last — finally
  12. present — there
  13. patient — calm and waiting
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. spell — letters
  16. spell — a short time
  17. last — to go on
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. present — the time now
  20. board — a committee
  21. degree — from a university
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. spell — magic
  24. present — a gift

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