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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: degree · kick · race · patient · hand · rock · deal · pit

  1. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  2. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  3. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  4. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  13. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  14. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  15. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  16. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  17. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  18. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  19. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  20. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  21. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. Boris sat near the fire ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — a thrill
  2. race — the arms race
  3. rock — to move gently
  4. rock — a stone
  5. degree — from a university
  6. hand — in cards
  7. race — humankind
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. degree — temperature
  10. kick — in football
  11. degree — an amount
  12. rock — music
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. deal — a big deal
  15. kick — with a leg
  16. patient — calm and waiting
  17. deal — an agreement
  18. pit — in a race
  19. pit — a fruit stone
  20. race — a contest
  21. deal — to handle
  22. hand — help
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. pit — a hole

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