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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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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 · cue · pop · ball · last · cap · hand · patient

  1. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  2. You don't need to ________________ round.
  3. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  7. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  8. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. We're almost out of ________________.
  19. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a round shape
  2. pop — to visit
  3. cue — for pool
  4. hand — help
  5. last — finally
  6. cue — a hint
  7. ball — a great time
  8. cap — a lid
  9. cap — of ice
  10. ball — a dance
  11. cue — a signal
  12. last — to go on
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. last — final
  15. cap — a hat
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. degree — an amount
  18. pop — soda
  19. pop — music
  20. degree — temperature
  21. degree — from a university
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. hand — in cards
  24. patient — calm and waiting

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