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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 124 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. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  10. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  11. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  12. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  13. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  14. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  15. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  16. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  17. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  18. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  22. David sat on the ________________.
  23. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  24. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. wave — with your hand
  3. degree — an amount
  4. chest — of your body
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. degree — temperature
  7. patient — calm and waiting
  8. chest — of your body
  9. dip — a sauce
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. board — to get on
  12. board — a committee
  13. swing — music
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. racket — a loud noise
  16. board — a flat piece
  17. wave — of the sea
  18. dip — to dunk
  19. chest — a box
  20. swing — in golf
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. swing — to play on
  23. dip — to sink
  24. wave — a sudden rise

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