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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. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  2. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  3. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  13. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  16. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a lid
  2. patient — calm and waiting
  3. pit — in a race
  4. degree — temperature
  5. fan — to cool the air
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. clip — to cut
  8. shower — to wash
  9. clip — a video
  10. pit — a fruit stone
  11. shower — rain
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. bat — the animal
  15. pit — a hole
  16. cap — a hat
  17. degree — an amount
  18. degree — from a university
  19. cap — of ice
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. clip — for paper

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