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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. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  2. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. Have you found your soul ________________?
  8. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  23. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. row — to paddle
  3. mate — to breed
  4. board — to get on
  5. degree — from a university
  6. degree — an amount
  7. mate — a partner
  8. bear — to put up with
  9. clip — to cut
  10. clip — a video
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. bear — the animal
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. mine — for digging
  15. degree — temperature
  16. board — a flat piece
  17. spell — letters
  18. spell — a short time
  19. row — a line
  20. clip — for paper
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. board — a committee
  23. mate — a friend
  24. spell — magic

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