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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. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  10. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  11. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  12. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  15. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  19. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  23. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  24. I've got the luggage in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — size or range
  2. tear — to rip
  3. degree — an amount
  4. scale — for weighing
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. safe — out of danger
  7. degree — from a university
  8. degree — temperature
  9. wave — with your hand
  10. pitch — a sports field
  11. scale — in music
  12. safe — a strongbox
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. pitch — a sales talk
  15. wave — of the sea
  16. tear — from crying
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. wave — a sudden rise
  19. pitch — completely
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. tear — from crying
  22. safe — out of danger
  23. trunk — of an elephant
  24. trunk — of a car

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