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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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Word bank
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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. How do you ________________ your surname?
  2. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  3. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  4. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  7. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  10. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  11. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  12. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  13. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  14. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  15. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  19. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — letters
  2. craft — a handicraft
  3. dip — a sauce
  4. mate — to breed
  5. degree — an amount
  6. present — a gift
  7. patient — calm and waiting
  8. mate — a partner
  9. mate — a friend
  10. dip — to dunk
  11. spell — a short time
  12. present — there
  13. craft — a skill
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. craft — boats
  16. degree — temperature
  17. present — the time now
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. dip — to sink
  20. cell — a phone
  21. degree — from a university
  22. cell — in biology
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. spell — magic

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