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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. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  13. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  14. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  15. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. The ________________ went through the wall.
  21. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  22. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. pit — a hole
  3. degree — from a university
  4. board — a flat piece
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. board — to get on
  7. pit — in a race
  8. court — of law
  9. degree — an amount
  10. mine — for digging
  11. court — for sport
  12. pit — a fruit stone
  13. calf — of the leg
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. court — of a king
  17. clip — a video
  18. board — a committee
  19. clip — to cut
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. nail — on a finger
  23. mine — belonging to me
  24. degree — temperature

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