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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. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  2. It's one o'clock ________________.
  3. I can't ________________ this cold.
  4. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  5. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. Have you settled on a ________________?
  11. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  22. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. This knife is not ________________ enough.

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

Answer key

  1. object — an aim
  2. sharp — exactly
  3. stand — to bear
  4. date — the fruit
  5. cap — a hat
  6. degree — from a university
  7. degree — temperature
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. ground — crushed
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. object — a thing
  12. degree — an amount
  13. object — to protest
  14. cell — a phone
  15. ground — a position
  16. cap — a lid
  17. cap — of ice
  18. ground — the earth
  19. sharp — clever
  20. cell — in biology
  21. stand — for spectators
  22. stand — on your feet
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. sharp — with an edge

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