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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. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  4. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  7. That must've been a ________________.
  8. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  9. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  10. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  11. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  17. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  18. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  19. David sat on the ________________.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  22. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. hide — animal skin
  4. wave — with your hand
  5. degree — an amount
  6. swing — in golf
  7. rush — a thrill
  8. swing — music
  9. wave — of the sea
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. board — to get on
  12. march — music
  13. march — the month
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. march — the month
  16. rush — hurry
  17. board — a flat piece
  18. rush — to hurry
  19. swing — to play on
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. wave — a sudden rise
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. degree — temperature
  24. board — a committee

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