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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 didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  3. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  11. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  22. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  23. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  24. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. bear — the animal
  3. bear — to put up with
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. degree — from a university
  6. pit — a hole
  7. wind — moving air
  8. net — in sport
  9. shower — rain
  10. object — an aim
  11. pit — a fruit stone
  12. net — for catching
  13. pit — in a race
  14. shower — to wash
  15. degree — an amount
  16. wake — a trail
  17. net — after costs
  18. bear — the animal
  19. degree — temperature
  20. wind — moving air
  21. object — a thing
  22. wake — before a funeral
  23. shower — a meteor shower
  24. object — to protest

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