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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 120 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. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  6. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  7. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  11. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  12. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  13. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  14. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  15. The King held a masked ________________.
  16. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  17. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  18. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. It's one o'clock ________________.
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. The ________________ went through the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — a measure
  2. degree — an amount
  3. foot — the bottom
  4. spring — the season
  5. foot — part of the body
  6. ball — a great time
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. spring — of water
  9. degree — from a university
  10. bear — the animal
  11. ball — a round shape
  12. bear — to put up with
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. ball — a dance
  16. patient — calm and waiting
  17. nail — on a finger
  18. bear — the animal
  19. degree — temperature
  20. sharp — exactly
  21. spring — a coil
  22. sharp — clever
  23. sharp — with an edge
  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