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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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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. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  2. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  19. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  23. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  24. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — high quality
  2. chest — a box
  3. hand — help
  4. fine — a penalty
  5. degree — temperature
  6. fine — all right
  7. chest — of your body
  8. bore — to tire
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. degree — an amount
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. bore — gave birth
  13. fork — in a road
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. chest — of your body
  17. snap — to click
  18. foot — part of the body
  19. foot — a measure
  20. hand — in cards
  21. degree — from a university
  22. fork — a garden tool
  23. foot — the bottom
  24. bore — to drill

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