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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 116 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. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  5. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  9. This piece is in a major ________________.
  10. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  19. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  20. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  21. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  22. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  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. degree — temperature
  2. staff — a stick
  3. wound — an injury
  4. club — a group
  5. staff — employees
  6. degree — from a university
  7. wind — moving air
  8. staff — employees
  9. key — in music
  10. ruler — for measuring
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. cold — an illness
  13. cold — not warm
  14. key — for a lock
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. wind — moving air
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. key — the most important part
  19. club — for dancing
  20. club — for golf
  21. ruler — for measuring
  22. ruler — a monarch
  23. wound — an injury
  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