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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. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  3. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. He works in a ________________ mill.
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  12. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  13. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  14. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  15. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  18. She's very handy with a ________________.
  19. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  20. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  21. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  24. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. face — part of the head
  3. wake — to stop sleeping
  4. clip — a video
  5. clip — to cut
  6. vault — an arched ceiling
  7. degree — from a university
  8. saw — the tool
  9. swing — to play on
  10. degree — an amount
  11. face — to point toward
  12. deal — to handle
  13. wake — a trail
  14. saw — past of 'see'
  15. deal — an agreement
  16. swing — in golf
  17. face — to confront
  18. saw — the tool
  19. swing — music
  20. vault — a safe
  21. wake — before a funeral
  22. clip — for paper
  23. vault — in gymnastics
  24. deal — a big deal

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