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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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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. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  4. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  5. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  6. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  7. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  8. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  9. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  14. When was this ________________ built?
  15. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  22. This piece is in a major ________________.
  23. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  24. Hard work is the ________________ to success.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. tear — from crying
  3. scale — for weighing
  4. dip — to sink
  5. scale — in music
  6. scale — size or range
  7. key — for a lock
  8. dip — a sauce
  9. cap — a lid
  10. tear — to rip
  11. degree — an amount
  12. tear — from crying
  13. temple — side of the head
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. cap — of ice
  16. season — in sport
  17. degree — from a university
  18. degree — temperature
  19. dip — to dunk
  20. season — of the year
  21. temple — a place of worship
  22. key — in music
  23. cap — a hat
  24. key — the most important part

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