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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 116 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: mark · field · kid · cap · degree · rest · tube · rush

  1. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  2. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  5. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  15. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  19. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  20. That must've been a ________________.
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. mark — to pay attention
  3. field — a subject
  4. rest — what's left
  5. rush — to hurry
  6. rest — what's left
  7. tube — the underground
  8. mark — a trace
  9. cap — a hat
  10. rest — a break
  11. field — farmland
  12. tube — a container
  13. kid — child
  14. tube — in a tire
  15. rush — hurry
  16. cap — a lid
  17. degree — an amount
  18. mark — a grade
  19. cap — of ice
  20. rush — a thrill
  21. kid — to tease
  22. degree — from a university
  23. field — for sport
  24. degree — temperature

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