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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. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  12. I can't ________________ this cold.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. He is an ace ________________.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  24. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — for spectators
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. kid — to tease
  4. stand — on your feet
  5. land — a country
  6. degree — an amount
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. wind — moving air
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. land — to come down
  11. track — a song
  12. stand — to bear
  13. degree — from a university
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. track — to keep track
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. bark — to shout
  18. land — ground
  19. pitcher — in baseball
  20. wind — moving air
  21. kid — child
  22. degree — temperature
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. track — a path

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