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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. Have you settled on a ________________?
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  4. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. Where did you ________________ them?
  7. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  8. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  11. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  12. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  16. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  17. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  18. The ________________ took off on time.
  19. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  22. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. degree — from a university
  3. bowl — a football final
  4. plane — in geometry
  5. kid — child
  6. mug — to rob
  7. foot — the bottom
  8. foot — part of the body
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. mug — a face
  11. toast — a drink to someone
  12. date — the fruit
  13. degree — temperature
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. bowl — a dish
  16. plane — a tool
  17. mug — a cup
  18. plane — an aircraft
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. degree — an amount
  21. foot — a measure
  22. toast — the most admired
  23. kid — to tease
  24. toast — bread

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