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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. He was locked up in a ________________.
  2. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  3. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. Have you found your soul ________________?
  10. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  16. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  17. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  18. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  21. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. cell — in biology
  3. dip — to sink
  4. game — a match
  5. mark — a trace
  6. degree — temperature
  7. fork — in a road
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. mate — a partner
  10. mark — a grade
  11. cell — a phone
  12. degree — an amount
  13. mark — to pay attention
  14. wound — an injury
  15. mate — a friend
  16. fork — a garden tool
  17. wound — an injury
  18. dip — a sauce
  19. degree — from a university
  20. fork — to eat with
  21. mate — to breed
  22. game — wild animals
  23. dip — to dunk
  24. game — a kind of play

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