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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. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  2. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  11. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  12. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  13. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  14. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  15. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  16. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  19. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  20. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  21. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  22. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  23. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  24. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — to eat with
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. degree — an amount
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. pit — in a race
  9. degree — temperature
  10. sharp — with an edge
  11. pit — a fruit stone
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. kick — in football
  14. hide — animal skin
  15. patient — calm and waiting
  16. sharp — clever
  17. bat — the animal
  18. fork — in a road
  19. kick — a thrill
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. pit — a hole
  22. fork — a garden tool
  23. kick — with a leg
  24. degree — from a university

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