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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. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  5. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  6. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  13. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  14. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  15. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  16. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. net — after costs
  3. degree — an amount
  4. pit — a fruit stone
  5. vault — in gymnastics
  6. deal — an agreement
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. race — the arms race
  9. degree — from a university
  10. wind — moving air
  11. net — in sport
  12. deal — a big deal
  13. vault — a safe
  14. deal — to handle
  15. pit — a hole
  16. pit — in a race
  17. race — humankind
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. race — a contest
  20. wind — moving air
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. degree — temperature
  23. vault — an arched ceiling
  24. net — for catching

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