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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's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  4. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  5. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  12. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  13. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  14. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  18. What do you think of the new ________________?
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  23. David sat on the ________________.
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. degree — temperature
  3. mark — a grade
  4. swing — music
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. fork — to eat with
  8. fall — to drop
  9. cabinet — a cupboard
  10. fork — in a road
  11. fork — a garden tool
  12. swing — in golf
  13. mark — to pay attention
  14. staff — employees
  15. fall — the season
  16. shower — rain
  17. mark — a trace
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. fall — to drop
  20. degree — an amount
  21. degree — from a university
  22. staff — a stick
  23. swing — to play on
  24. shower — to wash

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