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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. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. The ________________ went through the wall.
  3. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  9. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  10. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  13. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  14. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  15. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  16. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  19. That was ________________ to happen.
  20. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. kid — child
  6. degree — from a university
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. board — to get on
  9. fine — high quality
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. fine — all right
  13. board — a flat piece
  14. nail — on a finger
  15. board — a committee
  16. bound — obliged
  17. game — wild animals
  18. patient — calm and waiting
  19. bound — certain
  20. bound — tied together
  21. kid — to tease
  22. game — a match
  23. fine — a penalty
  24. degree — temperature

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