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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. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  7. Have you found your soul ________________?
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  17. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  18. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  19. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  20. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — a permit
  2. wind — moving air
  3. degree — from a university
  4. pass — to succeed
  5. kid — child
  6. wave — of the sea
  7. mate — a partner
  8. degree — an amount
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. rock — a stone
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. rock — to move gently
  13. degree — temperature
  14. squash — to crush
  15. squash — the sport
  16. rock — music
  17. wave — a sudden rise
  18. pass — to spend time
  19. mate — a friend
  20. wave — with your hand
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. wind — moving air
  23. kid — to tease
  24. mate — to breed

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