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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. I can't ________________ this cold.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. What do you think of the new ________________?
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  12. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  13. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  19. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. Where did you ________________ them?

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. stand — to bear
  3. field — farmland
  4. mug — a face
  5. degree — temperature
  6. foot — the bottom
  7. file — a tool
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. file — a document
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. foot — part of the body
  13. stand — on your feet
  14. field — a subject
  15. cabinet — a cupboard
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. file — a line of people
  18. stand — for spectators
  19. foot — a measure
  20. field — for sport
  21. mug — a cup
  22. degree — an amount
  23. bat — the animal
  24. mug — to rob

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