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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. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  2. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  3. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  4. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  9. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. I'll be taking the ________________.
  15. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  20. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  21. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  24. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to dunk
  2. fork — in a road
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. file — a document
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. degree — temperature
  8. lie — to recline
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. file — a tool
  11. calf — of the leg
  12. file — a line of people
  13. degree — from a university
  14. tube — the underground
  15. fork — to eat with
  16. dip — to sink
  17. dip — a sauce
  18. degree — an amount
  19. racket — a loud noise
  20. fork — a garden tool
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. tube — a container

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