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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. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. David sat on the ________________.
  4. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  7. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  8. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  13. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  14. When was this ________________ built?
  15. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  16. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  17. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  18. Where did you ________________ them?
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  23. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. tear — from crying
  3. swing — to play on
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. squash — to crush
  6. squash — the vegetable
  7. mug — a cup
  8. squash — the sport
  9. tear — to rip
  10. wave — a sudden rise
  11. degree — an amount
  12. wave — with your hand
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. mug — a face
  16. stick — to attach or keep to
  17. temple — side of the head
  18. mug — to rob
  19. degree — temperature
  20. swing — in golf
  21. tear — from crying
  22. wave — of the sea
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. swing — music

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