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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. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. What do you think of the new ________________?
  6. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  7. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  15. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  19. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  20. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  21. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of 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. club — a group
  3. hand — in cards
  4. degree — temperature
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. object — to protest
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. cabinet — a cupboard
  10. march — music
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. club — for dancing
  13. march — the month
  14. object — an aim
  15. foot — a measure
  16. march — the month
  17. degree — an amount
  18. wake — before a funeral
  19. foot — part of the body
  20. club — for golf
  21. object — a thing
  22. hand — help
  23. wake — a trail
  24. foot — the bottom

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