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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 116 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've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  2. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  6. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  7. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  8. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  9. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  10. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  11. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. How do you ________________ your surname?
  21. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  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. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. pit — in a race
  3. kid — to tease
  4. degree — temperature
  5. track — a path
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. mate — to breed
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. pit — a hole
  10. track — to keep track
  11. pit — a fruit stone
  12. clip — for paper
  13. track — a song
  14. mate — a partner
  15. patient — calm and waiting
  16. clip — to cut
  17. degree — an amount
  18. spell — magic
  19. kid — child
  20. spell — letters
  21. mate — a friend
  22. spell — a short time
  23. clip — a video
  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