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

Word bank: cap · lie · wave · kid · mate · saw · degree · court

  1. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  5. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  6. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  7. Have you found your soul ________________?
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  10. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  11. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  14. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  15. She's very handy with a ________________.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  23. He works in a ________________ mill.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. kid — to tease
  4. saw — past of 'see'
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. mate — to breed
  7. mate — a partner
  8. cap — of ice
  9. cap — a lid
  10. lie — to recline
  11. mate — a friend
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. cap — a hat
  14. wave — with your hand
  15. saw — the tool
  16. court — of a king
  17. court — for sport
  18. wave — a sudden rise
  19. degree — temperature
  20. degree — an amount
  21. degree — from a university
  22. wave — of the sea
  23. saw — the tool
  24. court — of law

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