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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. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  6. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  17. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  18. Don't do anything ________________.
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — to go away
  2. degree — from a university
  3. rock — a stone
  4. kid — to tease
  5. leaves — lets stay
  6. bear — the animal
  7. bear — the animal
  8. spring — a coil
  9. degree — temperature
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. rash — a series
  12. hand — help
  13. spring — the season
  14. spring — of water
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. leaves — of a tree
  17. bear — to put up with
  18. rash — hasty
  19. hand — in cards
  20. degree — an amount
  21. rock — to move gently
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. kid — child
  24. rock — music

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