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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. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  6. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  9. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  14. I can't ________________ this cold.
  15. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  16. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  17. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  20. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. The people resisted their cruel ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. kick — in football
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. degree — an amount
  5. kick — a thrill
  6. staff — employees
  7. degree — temperature
  8. stand — for spectators
  9. mouse — for a computer
  10. cold — an illness
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. stand — to bear
  15. staff — a stick
  16. kick — with a leg
  17. stand — on your feet
  18. degree — from a university
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. staff — employees
  21. cell — in biology
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. cold — not warm
  24. ruler — a monarch

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