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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. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  3. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  4. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  8. I can't ________________ this cold.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  13. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  14. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  15. This piece is in a major ________________.
  16. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. Have you settled on a ________________?
  19. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  20. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  21. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  22. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  23. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  24. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. scale — size or range
  3. bass — low music
  4. stand — for spectators
  5. degree — an amount
  6. degree — temperature
  7. key — for a lock
  8. stand — to bear
  9. row — a line
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. row — to paddle
  12. object — to protest
  13. key — the most important part
  14. date — the fruit
  15. key — in music
  16. object — an aim
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. scale — in music
  20. bass — the instrument
  21. object — a thing
  22. scale — for weighing
  23. bass — the fish
  24. stand — on your feet

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