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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. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  7. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  8. That was ________________ to happen.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  13. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  14. I can't ________________ this cold.
  15. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  16. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  17. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  18. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  19. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  20. I'll be taking the ________________.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  23. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  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 — an amount
  2. degree — temperature
  3. fine — all right
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. kick — in football
  7. tube — a container
  8. bound — certain
  9. degree — from a university
  10. pit — a hole
  11. cold — an illness
  12. kick — with a leg
  13. pit — a fruit stone
  14. stand — to bear
  15. bound — tied together
  16. stand — for spectators
  17. pit — in a race
  18. fine — a penalty
  19. stand — on your feet
  20. tube — the underground
  21. cold — not warm
  22. bound — obliged
  23. kick — a thrill
  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