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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. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  5. It's one o'clock ________________.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. Where did you ________________ them?
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  19. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  24. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. sharp — clever
  4. cap — of ice
  5. sharp — exactly
  6. degree — from a university
  7. mug — to rob
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. content — the amount
  10. rest — a break
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. content — happy
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. mug — a cup
  15. degree — an amount
  16. mug — a face
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. cap — a hat
  20. degree — temperature
  21. wind — moving air
  22. rest — what's left
  23. cap — a lid
  24. rest — what's left

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