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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. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  13. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  19. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  20. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  21. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  22. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  23. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  24. The spa offers ________________ extensions.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. row — a line
  3. degree — temperature
  4. row — to paddle
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. degree — an amount
  9. ground — a position
  10. degree — from a university
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. craft — boats
  13. wake — to stop sleeping
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. wake — a trail
  16. ground — the earth
  17. hide — animal skin
  18. ground — crushed
  19. lash — to lash out
  20. craft — a handicraft
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. lash — a whip stroke
  23. craft — a skill
  24. lash — an eyelash

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