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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 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. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  3. I've got to change the light ________________.
  4. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  5. What do you think of the new ________________?
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. The light ________________ burned out.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  13. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  21. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  22. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  23. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  24. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. cabinet — a cupboard
  3. bulb — for light
  4. bulb — of a plant
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. hand — help
  9. bulb — for light
  10. degree — an amount
  11. cap — a hat
  12. squash — the vegetable
  13. wake — before a funeral
  14. degree — temperature
  15. vault — an arched ceiling
  16. cap — a lid
  17. squash — the sport
  18. squash — to crush
  19. hand — in cards
  20. cap — of ice
  21. wake — a trail
  22. vault — in gymnastics
  23. vault — a safe
  24. wake — to stop sleeping

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