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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. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  2. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  3. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  18. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  19. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  22. The ________________ went through the wall.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a trace
  2. dip — to sink
  3. nail — on a finger
  4. degree — from a university
  5. degree — temperature
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. last — to go on
  8. dip — to dunk
  9. file — a document
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. file — a line of people
  12. last — final
  13. mark — a grade
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. squash — to crush
  16. degree — an amount
  17. dip — a sauce
  18. squash — the sport
  19. mark — to pay attention
  20. last — finally
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. bat — the animal
  24. file — a tool

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