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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. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  15. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  22. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  23. We're on a ________________ here.
  24. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. degree — an amount
  3. ground — crushed
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. drill — the tool
  6. degree — temperature
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. drill — army training
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. rule — government
  11. drill — a practice
  12. roll — a list
  13. ground — a position
  14. squash — the sport
  15. present — the time now
  16. squash — to crush
  17. present — a gift
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. ground — the earth
  20. degree — from a university
  21. roll — a cake
  22. squash — the vegetable
  23. roll — on a roll
  24. rule — a law

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