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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. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. When will it ________________ you to start?
  15. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. suit — clothes
  3. bat — the animal
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. fine — a penalty
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. drill — army training
  8. drill — the tool
  9. kid — child
  10. cell — a phone
  11. prune — to trim
  12. degree — an amount
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. suit — to fit
  15. fine — all right
  16. prune — to trim
  17. kid — to tease
  18. suit — in cards
  19. cell — in biology
  20. degree — temperature
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. drill — a practice
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. fine — high quality

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