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

  1. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  3. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  7. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  8. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  9. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  10. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  13. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  14. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  15. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  16. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  17. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  18. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  19. The ________________ took off on time.
  20. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  21. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  22. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  23. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  24. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. present — there
  3. dip — to dunk
  4. degree — an amount
  5. present — a gift
  6. mark — to pay attention
  7. scale — size or range
  8. plane — a tool
  9. scale — in music
  10. present — the time now
  11. degree — temperature
  12. scale — for weighing
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. dip — a sauce
  15. dip — to sink
  16. plane — in geometry
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. lie — to recline
  19. plane — an aircraft
  20. mark — a grade
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. racket — a loud noise
  24. mark — a trace

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