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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. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  5. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. Did you ________________ the button?
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  11. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  14. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  19. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  20. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  23. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  24. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. degree — from a university
  3. race — a contest
  4. hide — animal skin
  5. bore — to drill
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. press — to push
  8. cell — in biology
  9. cell — a phone
  10. press — a publisher
  11. pitch — completely
  12. content — the amount
  13. press — newspapers
  14. content — videos and posts
  15. degree — an amount
  16. content — happy
  17. race — the arms race
  18. pitch — a sales talk
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. pitch — a sports field
  21. race — humankind
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. bore — gave birth
  24. bore — to tire

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