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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. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  6. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  7. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  8. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. Where did you ________________ them?
  11. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. We're on a ________________ here.
  15. That must've been a ________________.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  18. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. He refilled his coffee ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a face
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. rush — to hurry
  4. degree — an amount
  5. safe — out of danger
  6. trunk — of a tree
  7. roll — a cake
  8. safe — a strongbox
  9. degree — temperature
  10. mug — to rob
  11. safe — out of danger
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. degree — from a university
  14. roll — on a roll
  15. rush — a thrill
  16. game — wild animals
  17. roll — a list
  18. rush — hurry
  19. wind — moving air
  20. wind — to turn a key
  21. wind — moving air
  22. game — a kind of play
  23. game — a match
  24. mug — a cup

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