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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. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  5. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  6. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  7. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  8. What do you think of the new ________________?
  9. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  15. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  16. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  17. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  23. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  24. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. degree — an amount
  3. degree — from a university
  4. cabinet — a cupboard
  5. patient — calm and waiting
  6. pit — in a race
  7. present — a gift
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. ruler — a monarch
  10. degree — temperature
  11. scale — size or range
  12. pit — a hole
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. pit — a fruit stone
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. wind — moving air
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. scale — in music
  22. present — the time now
  23. present — there
  24. ruler — for measuring

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