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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. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  2. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  12. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  13. I've got to change the light ________________.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  19. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  20. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  21. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  22. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  23. Did you ________________ the meat?
  24. The light ________________ burned out.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — past of 'wind'
  2. season — in sport
  3. staff — employees
  4. season — of the year
  5. degree — from a university
  6. cap — a hat
  7. degree — an amount
  8. wound — an injury
  9. kid — child
  10. degree — temperature
  11. bulb — of a plant
  12. fan — to cool the air
  13. bulb — for light
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. cap — a lid
  16. wound — an injury
  17. staff — employees
  18. kid — to tease
  19. cap — of ice
  20. staff — a stick
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. season — to add flavour
  24. bulb — for light

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