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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 120 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: mug · cell · degree · game · safe · cap · club · content

  1. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  2. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  6. Where did you ________________ them?
  7. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  10. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — a strongbox
  2. safe — out of danger
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. cell — in biology
  5. cap — a hat
  6. mug — to rob
  7. mug — a face
  8. cap — of ice
  9. mug — a cup
  10. club — for golf
  11. degree — an amount
  12. club — a group
  13. content — happy
  14. cap — a lid
  15. club — for dancing
  16. degree — from a university
  17. safe — out of danger
  18. cell — a phone
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. game — a match
  21. degree — temperature
  22. content — the amount
  23. game — wild animals
  24. game — a kind of play

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