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

Word bank: stand · arm · toast · kid · dip · firm · degree · scale

  1. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  2. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  3. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  8. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  9. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  10. I can't ________________ this cold.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. My father caught me by the ________________.
  13. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  16. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  17. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  18. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  22. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. firm — decided
  3. scale — size or range
  4. kid — child
  5. firm — steady
  6. degree — from a university
  7. toast — bread
  8. dip — to sink
  9. toast — a drink to someone
  10. stand — to bear
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. stand — for spectators
  14. degree — temperature
  15. dip — to dunk
  16. dip — a sauce
  17. stand — on your feet
  18. firm — a company
  19. kid — to tease
  20. degree — an amount
  21. arm — a part of something
  22. toast — the most admired
  23. scale — in music
  24. scale — for weighing

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