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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. You don't need to ________________ round.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  5. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  6. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  7. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  17. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  18. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  19. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  20. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  23. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  24. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — to visit
  2. degree — from a university
  3. degree — an amount
  4. dip — a sauce
  5. foot — a measure
  6. pop — music
  7. wave — a sudden rise
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. degree — temperature
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. dip — to dunk
  12. pop — soda
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. foot — part of the body
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. foot — the bottom
  17. wave — with your hand
  18. stick — to attach or keep to
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. wave — of the sea
  21. bat — the animal
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. dip — to sink

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