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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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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 · mark · wake · pit · hide · leaves · sharp · mate

  1. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  2. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  3. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  4. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  5. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  6. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  7. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  8. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  9. Have you found your soul ________________?
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  12. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  13. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  14. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  15. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  16. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  20. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. mark — to pay attention
  3. sharp — with an edge
  4. wake — to stop sleeping
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. hide — animal skin
  7. leaves — lets stay
  8. leaves — to go away
  9. mate — a partner
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. wake — a trail
  12. pit — in a race
  13. leaves — of a tree
  14. pit — a fruit stone
  15. mark — a grade
  16. sharp — clever
  17. mate — a friend
  18. degree — an amount
  19. mate — to breed
  20. mark — a trace
  21. degree — from a university
  22. degree — temperature
  23. pit — a hole
  24. sharp — exactly

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