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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. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  4. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  17. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  18. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  19. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. Have you met the new head ________________?
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. degree — temperature
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. last — final
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. last — to go on
  10. field — a subject
  11. degree — from a university
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. degree — an amount
  16. squash — the vegetable
  17. coach — pulled by horses
  18. hide — animal skin
  19. fan — to cool the air
  20. field — farmland
  21. squash — to crush
  22. squash — the sport
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. field — for sport

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