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

Word bank: degree · rash · club · object · ground · craft · tear · bay

  1. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  3. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. My mare is ________________ in color.
  7. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  14. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  15. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  16. There's no middle ________________.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  22. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  23. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  24. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. rash — on the skin
  3. club — for golf
  4. tear — from crying
  5. degree — from a university
  6. bay — a horse colour
  7. object — to protest
  8. rash — hasty
  9. object — an aim
  10. tear — to rip
  11. bay — a part of the sea
  12. tear — from crying
  13. club — for dancing
  14. bay — to keep at bay
  15. ground — the earth
  16. ground — a position
  17. degree — temperature
  18. object — a thing
  19. rash — a series
  20. ground — crushed
  21. club — a group
  22. craft — a skill
  23. craft — a handicraft
  24. craft — boats

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