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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: tear · sharp · dip · degree · field · present · fine · wake

  1. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  4. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  5. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  6. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  7. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  11. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. wake — to stop sleeping
  4. dip — to sink
  5. dip — a sauce
  6. present — a gift
  7. fine — a penalty
  8. tear — from crying
  9. tear — to rip
  10. present — there
  11. present — the time now
  12. wake — a trail
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. fine — high quality
  15. degree — an amount
  16. fine — all right
  17. degree — from a university
  18. field — for sport
  19. tear — from crying
  20. degree — temperature
  21. sharp — clever
  22. field — a subject
  23. dip — to dunk
  24. sharp — exactly

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