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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 120 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. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. There's no middle ________________.
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  5. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  6. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  9. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  10. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  15. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  16. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  17. He is an ace ________________.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  20. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  23. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  24. The ________________ went through the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. ground — a position
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. nail — on a finger
  5. cue — a hint
  6. dip — to sink
  7. court — of law
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. patient — calm and waiting
  10. cue — for pool
  11. degree — from a university
  12. court — of a king
  13. court — for sport
  14. cue — a signal
  15. ground — the earth
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. pitcher — in baseball
  18. degree — an amount
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. dip — to dunk
  21. ground — crushed
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. dip — a sauce
  24. nail — for a hammer

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