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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. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  8. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  9. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  14. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  15. When will it ________________ you to start?
  16. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  17. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  18. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  23. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  24. 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. suit — in cards
  2. drill — army training
  3. degree — an amount
  4. sharp — clever
  5. file — a document
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. file — a tool
  9. dip — a sauce
  10. file — a line of people
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. dip — to dunk
  14. drill — the tool
  15. suit — to fit
  16. sharp — with an edge
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. suit — clothes
  19. drill — a practice
  20. dip — to sink
  21. degree — from a university
  22. trunk — of a tree
  23. mouse — for a computer
  24. 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