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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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Word bank
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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. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  8. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. My mare is ________________ in color.
  11. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  12. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  19. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  20. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  21. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  22. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  23. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  24. I would like to have a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. degree — temperature
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. rest — what's left
  5. clip — for paper
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. kick — in football
  8. bay — to keep at bay
  9. clip — a video
  10. bay — a horse colour
  11. bowl — a football final
  12. sharp — with an edge
  13. degree — an amount
  14. rest — what's left
  15. degree — from a university
  16. clip — to cut
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. bay — a part of the sea
  19. bowl — to roll
  20. chair — a professorship
  21. kick — with a leg
  22. chair — a leader
  23. bowl — a dish
  24. rest — a break

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