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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. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  4. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  5. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  6. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  7. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  8. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  9. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  12. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  17. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  18. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  19. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  20. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  21. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  22. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — animal skin
  2. degree — from a university
  3. object — a thing
  4. fork — to eat with
  5. track — a song
  6. deal — an agreement
  7. squash — to crush
  8. deal — a big deal
  9. deal — to handle
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. object — an aim
  12. fork — in a road
  13. degree — temperature
  14. wake — before a funeral
  15. wake — a trail
  16. object — to protest
  17. track — to keep track
  18. squash — the sport
  19. fork — a garden tool
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. squash — the vegetable
  23. degree — an amount
  24. track — a path

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