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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. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. I can't ________________ this cold.
  10. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  11. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  12. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  13. I've got to change the light ________________.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  16. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  17. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  18. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  19. The light ________________ burned out.
  20. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  21. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  24. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. spring — a coil
  5. object — a thing
  6. spring — the season
  7. spring — of water
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. stand — to bear
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. wake — a trail
  12. object — to protest
  13. bulb — for light
  14. degree — an amount
  15. stand — for spectators
  16. board — a committee
  17. object — an aim
  18. wake — to stop sleeping
  19. bulb — for light
  20. board — a flat piece
  21. board — to get on
  22. degree — from a university
  23. stand — on your feet
  24. bulb — of a plant

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