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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. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  5. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  9. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  13. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  14. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  15. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. That must've been a ________________.
  21. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  22. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  23. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  24. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. trunk — of an elephant
  5. wave — of the sea
  6. rest — what's left
  7. degree — from a university
  8. dip — to dunk
  9. dip — a sauce
  10. degree — an amount
  11. cold — an illness
  12. rest — what's left
  13. rush — to hurry
  14. rest — a break
  15. rush — hurry
  16. cold — not warm
  17. dip — to sink
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. trunk — of a car
  20. rush — a thrill
  21. chair — a leader
  22. wave — a sudden rise
  23. wave — with your hand
  24. chair — to sit on

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