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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. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  2. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  9. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. Have you settled on a ________________?
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  17. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  20. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  21. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  22. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a flat piece
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. board — a committee
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. degree — temperature
  6. firm — steady
  7. degree — from a university
  8. board — to get on
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. tear — from crying
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. tear — to rip
  13. cold — an illness
  14. tear — from crying
  15. bat — the animal
  16. racket — a loud noise
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. firm — a company
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. date — the fruit
  22. firm — decided
  23. degree — an amount
  24. cold — not warm

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