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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.

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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: lash · foot · rule · pound · fine · degree · cold · mark

  1. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  2. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  3. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  4. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  5. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  6. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  7. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  8. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  11. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  12. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  15. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  18. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  23. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  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 — a measure
  2. foot — part of the body
  3. pound — for dogs
  4. lash — to lash out
  5. mark — to pay attention
  6. foot — the bottom
  7. fine — all right
  8. pound — a weight
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. fine — a penalty
  11. fine — high quality
  12. rule — government
  13. cold — an illness
  14. lash — a whip stroke
  15. mark — a grade
  16. degree — temperature
  17. mark — a trace
  18. rule — a law
  19. degree — from a university
  20. rule — to rule out
  21. cold — not warm
  22. pound — to hit hard
  23. lash — an eyelash
  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