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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 120 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. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  5. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  6. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  7. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  8. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  9. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  13. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  16. It's one o'clock ________________.
  17. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  18. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  19. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  23. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  24. We had a fire ________________ at school today.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — with an edge
  2. file — a tool
  3. degree — an amount
  4. mark — a grade
  5. wave — of the sea
  6. deal — to handle
  7. wave — a sudden rise
  8. mark — a trace
  9. mark — to pay attention
  10. drill — the tool
  11. degree — from a university
  12. firm — steady
  13. sharp — clever
  14. file — a document
  15. firm — decided
  16. sharp — exactly
  17. deal — a big deal
  18. drill — army training
  19. firm — a company
  20. file — a line of people
  21. degree — temperature
  22. wave — with your hand
  23. deal — an agreement
  24. drill — a practice

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