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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 116 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. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  3. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  4. It's one o'clock ________________.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  7. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  15. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  22. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. object — an aim
  3. wake — before a funeral
  4. sharp — exactly
  5. degree — an amount
  6. present — there
  7. lash — an eyelash
  8. degree — from a university
  9. wake — a trail
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. sharp — with an edge
  12. cold — an illness
  13. court — of a king
  14. object — a thing
  15. object — to protest
  16. court — for sport
  17. degree — temperature
  18. lash — to lash out
  19. court — of law
  20. sharp — clever
  21. present — a gift
  22. present — the time now
  23. cold — not warm
  24. lash — a whip stroke

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