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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 120 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. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  8. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  11. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  12. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  20. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. wake — a trail
  3. net — after costs
  4. pound — for dogs
  5. race — humankind
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. stick — to attach or keep to
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. tear — from crying
  10. rock — to move gently
  11. rock — music
  12. pound — to hit hard
  13. race — the arms race
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. tear — to rip
  16. net — for catching
  17. degree — from a university
  18. tear — from crying
  19. rock — a stone
  20. pound — a weight
  21. degree — an amount
  22. race — a contest
  23. net — in sport
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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