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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. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  5. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  6. My mare is ________________ in color.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  17. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  18. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  19. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  20. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  21. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  22. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  23. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  24. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. degree — from a university
  3. tear — to rip
  4. present — the time now
  5. kick — in football
  6. bay — a horse colour
  7. spring — the season
  8. rock — a stone
  9. tear — from crying
  10. kick — with a leg
  11. tear — from crying
  12. degree — temperature
  13. spring — a coil
  14. spring — of water
  15. degree — an amount
  16. bay — to keep at bay
  17. wave — of the sea
  18. wave — with your hand
  19. rock — to move gently
  20. present — there
  21. kick — a thrill
  22. wave — a sudden rise
  23. bay — a part of the sea
  24. present — a gift

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