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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. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  8. When will it ________________ you to start?
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  11. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  12. Don't do anything ________________.
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. Have you settled on a ________________?
  18. It's one o'clock ________________.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  24. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. wind — moving air
  4. degree — temperature
  5. sharp — clever
  6. wind — moving air
  7. suit — clothes
  8. suit — to fit
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. date — the fruit
  11. suit — in cards
  12. rash — hasty
  13. stem — to come from
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. degree — from a university
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. sharp — exactly
  19. degree — an amount
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. hand — help
  24. rash — a series

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