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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. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  6. Have you settled on a ________________?
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  10. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  17. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  18. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  19. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  20. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  21. Have you met the new head ________________?
  22. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — a short time
  2. wound — an injury
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. degree — temperature
  5. pitch — a sales talk
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. degree — from a university
  9. pitch — completely
  10. coach — pulled by horses
  11. spell — letters
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. wound — an injury
  14. spell — magic
  15. bat — the animal
  16. lie — to recline
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. date — the fruit
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. pitch — a sports field
  23. degree — an amount
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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