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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 ball is in your ________________.
  3. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  4. He works in a ________________ mill.
  5. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  6. The ________________ went through the wall.
  7. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  8. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  13. She's very handy with a ________________.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  16. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. court — for sport
  3. mouse — the animal
  4. saw — the tool
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. nail — on a finger
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. hand — help
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. court — of a king
  12. race — a contest
  13. saw — the tool
  14. hand — in cards
  15. lash — an eyelash
  16. mouse — for a computer
  17. race — humankind
  18. degree — an amount
  19. lash — to lash out
  20. race — the arms race
  21. lash — a whip stroke
  22. court — of law
  23. degree — from a university
  24. saw — past of 'see'

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