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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: chest · degree · kick · hand · rash · jam · mark · fine

  1. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  2. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  3. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  15. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. Don't do anything ________________.
  20. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  23. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  24. Would you like some apricot ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. kick — in football
  2. rash — on the skin
  3. jam — a tight spot
  4. degree — an amount
  5. rash — a series
  6. chest — of your body
  7. hand — in cards
  8. kick — a thrill
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. fine — high quality
  11. degree — from a university
  12. chest — of your body
  13. hand — help
  14. mark — a trace
  15. fine — a penalty
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. fine — all right
  18. degree — temperature
  19. rash — hasty
  20. mark — to pay attention
  21. chest — a box
  22. mark — a grade
  23. jam — in traffic
  24. jam — to spread on bread

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