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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. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  6. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  7. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  11. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  12. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  13. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. This piece is in a major ________________.
  16. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  17. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — a practice
  2. degree — an amount
  3. bass — the instrument
  4. degree — from a university
  5. wound — an injury
  6. key — for a lock
  7. drill — the tool
  8. wound — an injury
  9. drill — army training
  10. key — the most important part
  11. present — there
  12. bass — the fish
  13. bass — low music
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. key — in music
  16. present — a gift
  17. present — the time now
  18. degree — temperature

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