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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. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  5. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  8. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  17. My father caught me by the ________________.
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  20. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  23. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  24. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. arm — a part of something
  3. cell — in biology
  4. firm — decided
  5. firm — a company
  6. degree — temperature
  7. firm — steady
  8. dip — a sauce
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. wake — a trail
  11. cell — a phone
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. last — final
  14. bore — to drill
  15. degree — from a university
  16. bore — gave birth
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. last — to go on
  19. dip — to dunk
  20. bore — to tire
  21. last — finally
  22. dip — to sink
  23. wake — before a funeral
  24. wake — to stop sleeping

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