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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 116 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. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. Have you found your soul ________________?
  5. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  12. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  13. The ________________ market has crashed.
  14. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  18. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  19. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  20. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  21. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  22. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. What's the difference between broth and ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. bat — the animal
  3. degree — an amount
  4. mate — a partner
  5. rest — a break
  6. degree — temperature
  7. bass — the instrument
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. stock — goods
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. bowl — a dish
  12. bass — low music
  13. stock — shares
  14. rest — what's left
  15. degree — from a university
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. bowl — to roll
  18. mate — to breed
  19. bass — the fish
  20. bowl — a football final
  21. rest — what's left
  22. mate — a friend
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. stock — a soup base

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