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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 116 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. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  2. Did you ________________ the meat?
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  8. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. This piece is in a major ________________.
  18. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  19. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  20. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  23. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  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. key — for a lock
  2. season — to add flavour
  3. degree — temperature
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. squash — the sport
  6. degree — an amount
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. stick — to attach or keep to
  9. season — in sport
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. key — the most important part
  13. season — of the year
  14. wound — an injury
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. key — in music
  18. squash — to crush
  19. squash — the vegetable
  20. wound — an injury
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. lie — to recline
  23. wound — past of 'wind'
  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