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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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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. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  2. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  3. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  4. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  5. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. You don't need to ________________ round.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. We're almost out of ________________.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  17. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — army training
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. fan — to cool the air
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. drill — a practice
  7. pop — to visit
  8. degree — temperature
  9. pop — soda
  10. degree — an amount
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. mouse — for a computer
  13. kid — child
  14. drill — the tool
  15. degree — from a university
  16. mouse — the animal
  17. pop — music
  18. kid — to tease

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