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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 116 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. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  3. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  7. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  10. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  13. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  19. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. mark — a trace
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. spring — the season
  5. degree — from a university
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. fine — all right
  8. net — after costs
  9. fine — high quality
  10. fine — a penalty
  11. degree — an amount
  12. mark — a grade
  13. stick — to attach or keep to
  14. shower — rain
  15. net — in sport
  16. mark — to pay attention
  17. spring — a coil
  18. fork — a garden tool
  19. fork — to eat with
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. fork — in a road
  22. net — for catching
  23. shower — to wash
  24. spring — of water

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