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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 120 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. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  2. Have you found your soul ________________?
  3. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  6. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  9. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  10. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  11. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  12. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  19. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  23. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  24. I don't want to ________________ the boat.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a grade
  2. mate — a partner
  3. last — finally
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. mark — a trace
  6. mate — to breed
  7. kid — to tease
  8. mark — to pay attention
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. trunk — of a tree
  11. trunk — of an elephant
  12. rock — a stone
  13. last — final
  14. rock — music
  15. kid — child
  16. degree — an amount
  17. last — to go on
  18. mate — a friend
  19. lie — to recline
  20. degree — temperature
  21. degree — from a university
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. trunk — of a car
  24. rock — to move gently

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