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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: kick · sharp · degree · mate · hand · cap · leaves · rash

  1. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. It's one o'clock ________________.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. Have you found your soul ________________?
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  22. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  23. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  24. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. sharp — exactly
  3. degree — an amount
  4. mate — a partner
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. kick — with a leg
  7. mate — a friend
  8. mate — to breed
  9. rash — a series
  10. cap — a lid
  11. degree — from a university
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. leaves — to go away
  14. cap — of ice
  15. hand — in cards
  16. leaves — of a tree
  17. rash — hasty
  18. hand — help
  19. sharp — clever
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. leaves — lets stay
  22. kick — a thrill
  23. cap — a hat
  24. kick — in football

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