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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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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 · lie · kid · pit · hand · stand · tear · fork

  1. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  4. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  5. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  8. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. I can't ________________ this cold.
  15. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — for spectators
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. pit — a fruit stone
  4. fork — a garden tool
  5. lie — to recline
  6. kid — child
  7. fork — to eat with
  8. pit — in a race
  9. degree — temperature
  10. pit — a hole
  11. tear — from crying
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. fork — in a road
  14. stand — to bear
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. hand — in cards
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. degree — an amount
  19. tear — from crying
  20. hand — help
  21. tear — to rip
  22. stand — on your feet
  23. kid — to tease
  24. degree — from a university

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