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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. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  13. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  14. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — a sauce
  2. degree — temperature
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. squash — the sport
  5. face — part of the head
  6. face — to point toward
  7. degree — an amount
  8. bark — to shout
  9. cell — a phone
  10. squash — to crush
  11. chest — of your body
  12. face — to confront
  13. present — a gift
  14. present — there
  15. chest — of your body
  16. cell — in biology
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. dip — to sink
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. present — the time now
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. degree — from a university
  23. dip — to dunk
  24. chest — a box

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