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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. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  3. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  7. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  24. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. prune — to trim
  3. face — part of the head
  4. degree — temperature
  5. degree — an amount
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. fine — a penalty
  8. prune — to trim
  9. face — to confront
  10. fine — high quality
  11. wound — an injury
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. drill — the tool
  15. drill — army training
  16. drill — a practice
  17. lie — to recline
  18. kid — to tease
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. fine — all right
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. wound — an injury
  23. face — to point toward
  24. degree — from a university

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