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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. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  4. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  5. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  6. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  7. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  8. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. What do you think of the new ________________?
  11. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  12. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. Have you found your soul ________________?
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  20. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. present — the time now
  2. spell — letters
  3. spell — magic
  4. present — a gift
  5. rock — a stone
  6. rock — to move gently
  7. rock — music
  8. present — there
  9. mate — to breed
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. cabinet — a cupboard
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. degree — an amount
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. mate — a friend
  16. wound — an injury
  17. mate — a partner
  18. degree — from a university
  19. stick — to attach or keep to
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. spell — a short time
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. wound — an injury
  24. degree — temperature

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