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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. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  2. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  7. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  18. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  21. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. pitch — a sports field
  3. band — a music group
  4. wave — a sudden rise
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. snap — to speak sharply
  7. rest — a break
  8. prune — to trim
  9. pitch — a sales talk
  10. degree — an amount
  11. wave — of the sea
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. snap — to click
  14. prune — to trim
  15. season — of the year
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. pitch — completely
  18. season — in sport
  19. band — a ring
  20. snap — to snap out of it
  21. rest — what's left
  22. degree — from a university
  23. degree — temperature
  24. wave — with your hand

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