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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. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  4. Don't do anything ________________.
  5. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  9. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  10. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  11. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  15. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  16. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  17. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  18. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. My mare is ________________ in color.
  21. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  24. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. hand — help
  3. rash — on the skin
  4. rash — hasty
  5. trunk — of an elephant
  6. hand — in cards
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. bay — a part of the sea
  9. pit — a hole
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. bay — to keep at bay
  12. degree — an amount
  13. rash — a series
  14. pit — in a race
  15. chair — a leader
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. hide — animal skin
  18. trunk — of a car
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. bay — a horse colour
  21. trunk — of a tree
  22. degree — from a university
  23. pit — a fruit stone
  24. hand — part of the body

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