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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. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. Have you settled on a ________________?
  3. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  4. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  5. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  6. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  7. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  11. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  12. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  13. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  14. We're on a ________________ here.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  18. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  21. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  22. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  23. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  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. degree — an amount
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. craft — a skill
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. lie — to recline
  6. roll — a list
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. game — a match
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. cue — for pool
  11. craft — a handicraft
  12. craft — boats
  13. cue — a signal
  14. roll — on a roll
  15. spell — letters
  16. spell — magic
  17. roll — a cake
  18. game — wild animals
  19. degree — from a university
  20. cue — a hint
  21. date — the fruit
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. spell — a short time
  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