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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. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  9. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  12. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  16. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  17. Did you ________________ the meat?
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  22. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. The ________________ went through the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. kid — to tease
  3. patient — calm and waiting
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. degree — temperature
  6. wound — an injury
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. nail — on a finger
  12. prune — to trim
  13. kid — child
  14. wound — an injury
  15. mark — a trace
  16. mark — to pay attention
  17. season — to add flavour
  18. season — of the year
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. degree — from a university
  21. prune — to trim
  22. mark — a grade
  23. degree — an amount
  24. nail — for a hammer

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