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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. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  2. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. My father caught me by the ________________.
  5. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  6. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  7. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  8. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  9. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  15. Where did you ________________ them?
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. I'll be taking the ________________.
  20. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — of ice
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. degree — an amount
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. mug — a face
  6. mug — a cup
  7. arm — a part of something
  8. cap — a hat
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. degree — temperature
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. land — to come down
  13. land — a country
  14. tube — in a tire
  15. mug — to rob
  16. cap — a lid
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. land — ground
  19. tube — the underground
  20. perch — the fish
  21. degree — from a university
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. tube — a container
  24. arm — part of the body

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