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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 120 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. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. She's very handy with a ________________.
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  8. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  9. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  10. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. Did you ________________ the meat?
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  17. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  20. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. I have a corn on my right ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. saw — past of 'see'
  3. saw — the tool
  4. saw — the tool
  5. last — finally
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. season — of the year
  8. foot — the bottom
  9. firm — decided
  10. fan — to cool the air
  11. wind — moving air
  12. wind — moving air
  13. season — to add flavour
  14. degree — an amount
  15. degree — from a university
  16. firm — a company
  17. season — in sport
  18. last — to go on
  19. foot — a measure
  20. firm — steady
  21. last — final
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. foot — part of the body

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