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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. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  4. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  5. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  6. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  7. Have you met the new head ________________?
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  10. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  11. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  14. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  20. When will it ________________ you to start?
  21. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  22. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. fall — to drop
  4. suit — in cards
  5. dip — to sink
  6. bear — the animal
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. kid — to tease
  9. dip — a sauce
  10. bear — to put up with
  11. dip — to dunk
  12. degree — an amount
  13. coach — pulled by horses
  14. bear — the animal
  15. fall — to drop
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. wind — moving air
  18. wind — moving air
  19. suit — clothes
  20. suit — to fit
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. fall — the season
  23. kid — child
  24. degree — from a university

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