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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. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. Where did you ________________ them?
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  14. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a cup
  2. degree — temperature
  3. mug — to rob
  4. drill — the tool
  5. hand — help
  6. hand — in cards
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. drill — a practice
  9. drill — army training
  10. land — a country
  11. mouse — for a computer
  12. land — to come down
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. patient — calm and waiting
  15. kid — child
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. mug — a face
  18. degree — an amount
  19. kid — to tease
  20. degree — from a university
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. land — ground
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. patient — a sick person

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