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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. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  3. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  9. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  16. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  19. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  20. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  21. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  22. I can't ________________ this cold.
  23. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  24. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. mouse — for a computer
  4. rule — a law
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. net — in sport
  7. cold — not warm
  8. stand — on your feet
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. cold — an illness
  11. degree — from a university
  12. net — after costs
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. degree — an amount
  15. rule — government
  16. rule — to rule out
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. net — for catching
  19. fan — to cool the air
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. stand — to bear
  23. patient — calm and waiting
  24. stand — for spectators

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