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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. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  7. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  8. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  9. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  10. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. My father caught me by the ________________.
  13. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  14. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  15. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  18. I'll be taking the ________________.
  19. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  20. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  21. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  24. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. degree — temperature
  3. hide — animal skin
  4. cell — in biology
  5. degree — from a university
  6. tube — in a tire
  7. rule — government
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. arm — a part of something
  14. toast — the most admired
  15. rule — a law
  16. band — a ring
  17. tube — a container
  18. tube — the underground
  19. rule — to rule out
  20. band — a rubber band
  21. toast — a drink to someone
  22. band — a music group
  23. toast — bread
  24. cell — a phone

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