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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. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  4. It's one o'clock ________________.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  7. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  8. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  9. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  18. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  19. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  20. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a flat piece
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. rash — a series
  4. sharp — exactly
  5. degree — from a university
  6. rule — to rule out
  7. perch — the fish
  8. board — a committee
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. kid — to tease
  11. rash — hasty
  12. kid — child
  13. board — to get on
  14. degree — temperature
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. rule — government
  19. rule — a law
  20. calf — of the leg
  21. sharp — clever
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. degree — an amount
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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