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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: cold · foot · bowl · bulb · degree · wound · ball · rest

  1. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  2. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  3. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  4. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  5. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  8. I've got to change the light ________________.
  9. The King held a masked ________________.
  10. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  11. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. The light ________________ burned out.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. foot — the bottom
  2. bowl — a football final
  3. bulb — of a plant
  4. rest — a break
  5. rest — what's left
  6. rest — what's left
  7. ball — a great time
  8. bulb — for light
  9. ball — a dance
  10. bowl — a dish
  11. ball — a round shape
  12. wound — an injury
  13. cold — not warm
  14. wound — an injury
  15. bowl — to roll
  16. degree — from a university
  17. bulb — for light
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. foot — part of the body
  20. degree — temperature
  21. foot — a measure
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. cold — an illness
  24. degree — an amount

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