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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. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  4. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  5. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  6. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  7. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  8. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  11. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  12. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  15. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  16. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  17. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  18. That must've been a ________________.
  19. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  20. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. Have you met the new head ________________?
  23. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  24. She had a strange look on her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. degree — from a university
  3. dip — a sauce
  4. bore — to drill
  5. bore — to tire
  6. rush — to hurry
  7. coach — pulled by horses
  8. squash — the vegetable
  9. squash — the sport
  10. rush — hurry
  11. dip — to sink
  12. bore — gave birth
  13. face — to confront
  14. foot — part of the body
  15. dip — to dunk
  16. foot — the bottom
  17. foot — a measure
  18. rush — a thrill
  19. face — to point toward
  20. squash — to crush
  21. degree — an amount
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. face — part of the head

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