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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. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  6. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  7. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  8. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  9. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  10. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  11. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  12. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  13. The King held a masked ________________.
  14. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  15. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  16. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  20. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the instrument
  2. degree — an amount
  3. ball — a great time
  4. degree — temperature
  5. pit — a hole
  6. fork — to eat with
  7. mouse — for a computer
  8. bass — the fish
  9. pit — in a race
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. bass — low music
  13. ball — a dance
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. ball — a round shape
  16. patient — calm and waiting
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. land — to come down
  19. fork — a garden tool
  20. pit — a fruit stone
  21. land — a country
  22. fork — in a road
  23. land — ground
  24. degree — from a university

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