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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. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  4. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  7. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  11. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  12. Have you met the new head ________________?
  13. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  14. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  15. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  16. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  23. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  24. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. kick — in football
  4. craft — boats
  5. degree — temperature
  6. firm — a company
  7. patient — calm and waiting
  8. swing — to play on
  9. drill — army training
  10. firm — decided
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. swing — music
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. kick — a thrill
  16. craft — a handicraft
  17. drill — the tool
  18. kick — with a leg
  19. drill — a practice
  20. firm — steady
  21. degree — an amount
  22. swing — in golf
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. craft — a skill

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