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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. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  4. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  10. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  14. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  19. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  20. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  21. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. degree — temperature
  3. current — happening now
  4. squash — the sport
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. foot — part of the body
  7. capital — a city
  8. squash — to crush
  9. dip — to dunk
  10. foot — the bottom
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. degree — from a university
  13. current — of water
  14. bore — gave birth
  15. hand — help
  16. bore — to drill
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. foot — a measure
  19. bore — to tire
  20. current — electric
  21. dip — a sauce
  22. capital — money
  23. degree — an amount
  24. dip — to sink

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