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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. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  2. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  3. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  23. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  24. Where did you ________________ them?

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. mouse — for a computer
  3. bass — the fish
  4. tear — from crying
  5. race — a contest
  6. bass — the instrument
  7. race — humankind
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. degree — temperature
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. tear — to rip
  14. mug — a cup
  15. degree — from a university
  16. degree — an amount
  17. shower — rain
  18. shower — to wash
  19. bass — low music
  20. race — the arms race
  21. tear — from crying
  22. trunk — of a tree
  23. mug — a face
  24. mug — to rob

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