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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  2. He works in a ________________ mill.
  3. She's very handy with a ________________.
  4. David sat on the ________________.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  15. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  16. When will it ________________ you to start?
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. suit — in cards
  2. saw — the tool
  3. saw — the tool
  4. swing — to play on
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. degree — an amount
  7. saw — past of 'see'
  8. degree — from a university
  9. hand — help
  10. degree — temperature
  11. sharp — clever
  12. hand — in cards
  13. swing — in golf
  14. suit — clothes
  15. sharp — with an edge
  16. suit — to fit
  17. swing — music
  18. sharp — exactly

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