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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. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  5. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  16. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  24. The polar ice ________________ is melting.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — to clutch at straws
  2. degree — temperature
  3. ground — the earth
  4. rash — on the skin
  5. pitch — completely
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. field — farmland
  8. field — a subject
  9. ground — crushed
  10. club — for dancing
  11. field — for sport
  12. ground — a position
  13. pitch — a sales talk
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. cap — a lid
  16. club — for golf
  17. rash — hasty
  18. club — a group
  19. rash — a series
  20. cap — a hat
  21. degree — from a university
  22. degree — an amount
  23. pitch — a sports field
  24. cap — of ice

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