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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. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  4. He works in a ________________ mill.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  12. She's very handy with a ________________.
  13. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  14. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  24. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. degree — an amount
  3. safe — a strongbox
  4. saw — the tool
  5. clip — for paper
  6. degree — temperature
  7. press — a publisher
  8. kid — to tease
  9. press — newspapers
  10. degree — from a university
  11. safe — out of danger
  12. saw — the tool
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. bowl — a dish
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. clip — a video
  17. bowl — to roll
  18. kid — child
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. bowl — a football final
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. clip — to cut
  23. saw — past of 'see'
  24. press — to push

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