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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 116 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. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  5. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  13. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. The light ________________ burned out.
  18. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  21. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  22. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  23. I've got to change the light ________________.
  24. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. hand — help
  3. degree — an amount
  4. mouse — for a computer
  5. patient — calm and waiting
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. bulb — of a plant
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. last — to go on
  10. degree — from a university
  11. degree — temperature
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. bowl — a football final
  14. last — final
  15. object — an aim
  16. last — finally
  17. bulb — for light
  18. object — to protest
  19. hand — in cards
  20. object — a thing
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. bowl — to roll
  23. bulb — for light
  24. hand — part of the body

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