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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. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. My father caught me by the ________________.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  9. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  10. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  11. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  12. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  17. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  18. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  19. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. toast — the most admired
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. pass — a permit
  6. kid — child
  7. degree — temperature
  8. craft — a skill
  9. pass — to spend time
  10. toast — a drink to someone
  11. arm — a part of something
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. cap — a hat
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. craft — boats
  17. cap — of ice
  18. toast — bread
  19. pass — to succeed
  20. kid — to tease
  21. craft — a handicraft
  22. degree — from a university
  23. cap — a lid
  24. degree — an amount

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