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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. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  10. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  11. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  12. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  13. He is an ace ________________.
  14. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  20. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  23. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  24. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a hint
  2. degree — temperature
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. hand — in cards
  8. degree — an amount
  9. dip — a sauce
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. bore — gave birth
  12. bore — to drill
  13. pitcher — in baseball
  14. cue — for pool
  15. band — a music group
  16. dip — to dunk
  17. band — a ring
  18. hand — help
  19. cue — a signal
  20. bore — to tire
  21. degree — from a university
  22. rule — government
  23. rule — a law
  24. dip — to sink

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