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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: key · degree · fall · wake · hand · patient · dip · bear

  1. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  7. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  12. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  13. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  20. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  23. This piece is in a major ________________.
  24. A black ________________ roamed the forest.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. degree — an amount
  3. dip — to sink
  4. fall — the season
  5. fall — to drop
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. key — the most important part
  8. degree — from a university
  9. key — for a lock
  10. degree — temperature
  11. dip — to dunk
  12. bear — to put up with
  13. fall — to drop
  14. hand — help
  15. dip — a sauce
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. bear — the animal
  20. wake — a trail
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. patient — calm and waiting
  23. key — in music
  24. bear — the animal

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