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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. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  8. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  9. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  10. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  20. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  21. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  22. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  23. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  24. The ________________ went through the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. degree — from a university
  4. calf — of the leg
  5. content — happy
  6. cell — in biology
  7. bank — of a river
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. bank — for money
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. degree — an amount
  14. tear — to rip
  15. nail — on a finger
  16. tear — from crying
  17. cell — a phone
  18. tear — from crying
  19. bank — for money
  20. content — the amount
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. racket — a loud noise
  23. nail — for a hammer
  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