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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. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  3. What do you think of the new ________________?
  4. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  5. That must've been a ________________.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  11. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  19. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  20. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  23. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  24. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. cabinet — a cupboard
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. rush — a thrill
  6. wind — moving air
  7. wind — moving air
  8. dip — to dunk
  9. race — the arms race
  10. dip — a sauce
  11. rush — hurry
  12. degree — an amount
  13. race — a contest
  14. mate — a partner
  15. rush — to hurry
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. degree — temperature
  18. dip — to sink
  19. mate — a friend
  20. fine — a penalty
  21. race — humankind
  22. fine — all right
  23. fine — high quality
  24. mate — to breed

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