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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 · firm · land · cold · rash · stick · dip · cabinet

  1. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. Don't do anything ________________.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  6. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  9. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  10. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  13. What do you think of the new ________________?
  14. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  15. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  23. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  24. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. degree — an amount
  3. rash — hasty
  4. land — a country
  5. rash — a series
  6. stick — to attach or keep to
  7. cold — an illness
  8. dip — a sauce
  9. firm — decided
  10. firm — steady
  11. cold — not warm
  12. cabinet — a cupboard
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. firm — a company
  16. dip — to sink
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. degree — temperature
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. land — ground
  21. land — to come down
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. dip — to dunk

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