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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. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  3. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  4. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  7. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  8. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. My mare is ________________ in color.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. The King held a masked ________________.
  21. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  22. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  23. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. bay — a part of the sea
  3. row — to paddle
  4. shower — a meteor shower
  5. row — a line
  6. bay — to keep at bay
  7. rock — to move gently
  8. kick — a thrill
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. kick — with a leg
  12. shower — rain
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. bay — a horse colour
  15. shower — to wash
  16. ball — a great time
  17. bat — the animal
  18. kick — in football
  19. degree — from a university
  20. ball — a dance
  21. ball — a round shape
  22. rock — music
  23. rock — a stone
  24. degree — temperature

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