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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. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  3. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  9. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. Did you ________________ the meat?
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. hide — animal skin
  3. season — of the year
  4. band — a ring
  5. firm — steady
  6. chest — a box
  7. chest — of your body
  8. firm — a company
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. chest — of your body
  11. current — of water
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. season — to add flavour
  14. degree — an amount
  15. current — electric
  16. season — in sport
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. band — a music group
  19. cell — a phone
  20. current — happening now
  21. degree — from a university
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. cell — in biology
  24. firm — decided

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