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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. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  4. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  7. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  12. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  13. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  14. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  15. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. degree — from a university
  3. hide — animal skin
  4. bear — to put up with
  5. net — after costs
  6. bear — the animal
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. march — the month
  9. leaves — lets stay
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. stick — to attach or keep to
  15. leaves — to go away
  16. degree — an amount
  17. net — for catching
  18. bear — the animal
  19. march — the month
  20. leaves — of a tree
  21. march — music
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. net — in sport
  24. pitcher — a jug

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