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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. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  5. The ________________ went through the wall.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  9. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  10. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  11. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  14. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  15. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  23. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. degree — an amount
  3. wound — an injury
  4. wave — a sudden rise
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. cell — in biology
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. nail — on a finger
  9. wave — of the sea
  10. kick — with a leg
  11. can — a tin
  12. cell — a phone
  13. kick — a thrill
  14. can — to be able to
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. shower — rain
  17. degree — from a university
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. degree — temperature
  21. wound — an injury
  22. kick — in football
  23. wave — with your hand
  24. shower — to wash

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