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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. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  3. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  4. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  5. That must've been a ________________.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  9. Have you met the new head ________________?
  10. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  13. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  17. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  20. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  23. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  24. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. cue — for pool
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. ground — the earth
  5. rush — a thrill
  6. snap — to click
  7. degree — from a university
  8. object — an aim
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. rush — hurry
  11. ground — a position
  12. cue — a hint
  13. cue — a signal
  14. degree — temperature
  15. cold — not warm
  16. coach — pulled by horses
  17. object — to protest
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. rush — to hurry
  20. snap — to snap out of it
  21. cold — an illness
  22. ground — crushed
  23. snap — to speak sharply
  24. object — a thing

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