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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. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. David sat on the ________________.
  3. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  4. My father caught me by the ________________.
  5. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  10. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  11. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  14. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  19. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  20. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. swing — to play on
  3. cue — a hint
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. bore — gave birth
  6. chest — of your body
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. swing — music
  10. cue — for pool
  11. bore — to tire
  12. degree — from a university
  13. wake — to stop sleeping
  14. bore — to drill
  15. band — a music group
  16. chest — of your body
  17. chest — a box
  18. arm — a part of something
  19. swing — in golf
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. band — a ring
  22. wake — a trail
  23. cue — a signal
  24. degree — an amount

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