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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. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  5. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  6. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  7. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  12. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  13. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  16. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  17. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  21. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. calf — of the leg
  3. field — a subject
  4. bore — to drill
  5. pit — a hole
  6. pit — in a race
  7. bass — low music
  8. field — for sport
  9. field — farmland
  10. degree — an amount
  11. bore — to tire
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. bass — the fish
  14. fall — to drop
  15. bass — the instrument
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. fall — the season
  18. fall — to drop
  19. degree — from a university
  20. bore — gave birth
  21. pit — a fruit stone
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. cell — in biology
  24. degree — temperature

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