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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. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  9. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  10. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  14. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  15. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  16. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  20. I'll be taking the ________________.
  21. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  22. The ________________ went through the wall.
  23. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. lash — to lash out
  3. cell — a phone
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. cap — of ice
  7. degree — from a university
  8. scale — for weighing
  9. nail — on a finger
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. cap — a hat
  12. degree — an amount
  13. lash — a whip stroke
  14. tube — a container
  15. lash — an eyelash
  16. scale — in music
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. scale — size or range
  20. tube — the underground
  21. chair — a leader
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. cap — a lid
  24. cell — in biology

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