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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. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  3. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  4. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  5. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  14. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  15. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  16. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  17. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  18. Did you ________________ the button?
  19. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  20. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. He hit the ball with his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. wave — a sudden rise
  3. rule — to rule out
  4. club — a group
  5. press — a publisher
  6. tear — from crying
  7. press — newspapers
  8. prune — to trim
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. tear — to rip
  11. prune — to trim
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. club — for golf
  14. racket — a loud noise
  15. club — for dancing
  16. wave — with your hand
  17. rule — a law
  18. press — to push
  19. wave — of the sea
  20. rule — government
  21. degree — temperature
  22. tear — from crying
  23. degree — from a university
  24. racket — for tennis

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