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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. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  4. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  5. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  6. Don't do anything ________________.
  7. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  8. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  9. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  10. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  11. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  12. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  13. Have you found your soul ________________?
  14. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  19. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  20. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  21. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  22. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  23. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  24. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. degree — from a university
  3. object — to protest
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. object — a thing
  6. rash — hasty
  7. pound — for dogs
  8. squash — the vegetable
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. hide — animal skin
  11. squash — the sport
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. mate — a partner
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. squash — to crush
  16. fan — to cool the air
  17. degree — temperature
  18. object — an aim
  19. mate — a friend
  20. pound — a weight
  21. rash — on the skin
  22. mate — to breed
  23. pound — to hit hard
  24. rash — a series

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