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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 · fine · degree · stick · hide · kid · fan · game

  1. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  9. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  13. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  14. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  15. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  16. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. fine — all right
  3. kid — to tease
  4. degree — temperature
  5. kid — child
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. fan — to cool the air
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. tear — to rip
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. hide — animal skin
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. tear — from crying
  18. fine — a penalty
  19. degree — from a university
  20. stick — to attach or keep to
  21. degree — an amount
  22. tear — from crying
  23. fine — high quality
  24. game — a match

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