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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. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  3. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  4. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  7. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  10. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. I've got to change the light ________________.
  13. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. The light ________________ burned out.
  16. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  17. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  21. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  24. I have a corn on my right ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. craft — boats
  3. lie — to recline
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. kid — child
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. chest — a box
  8. kid — to tease
  9. craft — a skill
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. degree — from a university
  12. bulb — for light
  13. foot — a measure
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. bulb — for light
  16. craft — a handicraft
  17. foot — the bottom
  18. chest — of your body
  19. chest — of your body
  20. fan — to cool the air
  21. bulb — of a plant
  22. degree — an amount
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. foot — part of the body

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