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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. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  6. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  10. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  18. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  19. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  23. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  24. The ________________ went through the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. safe — out of danger
  4. cell — in biology
  5. dip — to dunk
  6. nail — on a finger
  7. degree — temperature
  8. last — final
  9. safe — out of danger
  10. safe — a strongbox
  11. last — to go on
  12. dip — to sink
  13. hand — in cards
  14. cell — a phone
  15. degree — an amount
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. dip — a sauce
  18. cue — a signal
  19. cue — a hint
  20. hand — help
  21. last — finally
  22. cue — for pool
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. nail — for a hammer

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