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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. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  5. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. I can't ________________ this cold.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  19. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  20. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  23. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  24. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. deal — to handle
  3. game — a match
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. deal — a big deal
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. game — wild animals
  9. degree — from a university
  10. perch — the fish
  11. bat — the animal
  12. spell — magic
  13. degree — an amount
  14. stand — to bear
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. spell — letters
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. stand — for spectators
  20. stand — on your feet
  21. spell — a short time
  22. deal — an agreement
  23. patient — calm and waiting
  24. patient — a sick person

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