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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. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  11. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. The ________________ went through the wall.
  14. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  15. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  24. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. wake — a trail
  3. cap — a hat
  4. degree — an amount
  5. cap — a lid
  6. cell — a phone
  7. nail — on a finger
  8. hand — in cards
  9. cap — of ice
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. firm — steady
  12. degree — from a university
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. wake — before a funeral
  16. hand — help
  17. lie — to recline
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. firm — decided
  22. cell — in biology
  23. wake — to stop sleeping
  24. firm — a company

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