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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. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  5. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  6. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  15. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  16. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  21. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  22. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. degree — from a university
  4. leaves — to go away
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. rest — what's left
  7. clip — to cut
  8. row — a line
  9. rest — what's left
  10. leaves — lets stay
  11. clip — a video
  12. cell — in biology
  13. cell — a phone
  14. bass — low music
  15. stick — to attach or keep to
  16. leaves — of a tree
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. row — to paddle
  19. clip — for paper
  20. rest — a break
  21. bass — the fish
  22. bass — the instrument
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. degree — an amount

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