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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. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  3. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  8. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  11. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  12. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  19. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. We have nothing to ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. dip — to dunk
  3. staff — a stick
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. degree — temperature
  6. row — a line
  7. dip — to sink
  8. kick — a thrill
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. staff — employees
  12. kick — with a leg
  13. field — farmland
  14. field — for sport
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. dip — a sauce
  17. degree — from a university
  18. hide — animal skin
  19. staff — employees
  20. row — to paddle
  21. kick — in football
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. degree — an amount
  24. hide — to keep secret

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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