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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. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  4. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  10. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  11. Have you found your soul ________________?
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  14. The ball is in your ________________.
  15. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  16. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  19. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. The ________________ went through the wall.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. race — humankind
  2. degree — temperature
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. race — the arms race
  5. hand — help
  6. hand — in cards
  7. race — a contest
  8. degree — an amount
  9. squash — the vegetable
  10. nail — on a finger
  11. mate — a partner
  12. squash — to crush
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. court — for sport
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. mate — to breed
  17. squash — the sport
  18. patient — calm and waiting
  19. mate — a friend
  20. court — of law
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. court — of a king
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. degree — from a university

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