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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 would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  7. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  15. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  16. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  17. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  18. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  19. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  20. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  21. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  22. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  23. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. game — wild animals
  3. snap — to click
  4. lie — to recline
  5. degree — from a university
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. game — a match
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. board — to get on
  12. degree — an amount
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. mouse — for a computer
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. board — a flat piece
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. rest — what's left
  19. patient — calm and waiting
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. snap — to speak sharply
  22. board — a committee
  23. rest — what's left
  24. degree — temperature

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