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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. Have you found your soul ________________?
  2. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. I can't ________________ this cold.
  7. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  11. The light ________________ burned out.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  14. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  15. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  16. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  17. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  18. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  21. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  22. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  23. I've got to change the light ________________.
  24. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a partner
  2. mate — a friend
  3. degree — temperature
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. row — a line
  6. stand — to bear
  7. chip — to eat
  8. row — to paddle
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. mate — to breed
  11. bulb — for light
  12. degree — an amount
  13. patient — calm and waiting
  14. bore — gave birth
  15. stand — on your feet
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. bulb — of a plant
  18. bore — to drill
  19. degree — from a university
  20. stand — for spectators
  21. bore — to tire
  22. chip — in a computer
  23. bulb — for light
  24. chip — for betting

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