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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. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  4. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. Don't do anything ________________.
  7. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  8. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  9. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  10. Where did you ________________ them?
  11. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  14. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  15. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  20. He is an ace ________________.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  23. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  24. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. degree — an amount
  3. mug — a face
  4. mark — a grade
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. rash — hasty
  7. rock — music
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. face — part of the head
  10. mug — to rob
  11. rock — to move gently
  12. hand — in cards
  13. mark — a trace
  14. mark — to pay attention
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. degree — temperature
  17. mug — a cup
  18. hand — help
  19. face — to point toward
  20. pitcher — in baseball
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. rock — a stone
  23. face — to confront
  24. rash — a series

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