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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. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  3. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  4. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  5. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  6. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  9. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  10. David sat on the ________________.
  11. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  12. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  15. It's one o'clock ________________.
  16. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. When was this ________________ built?
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  24. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. firm — decided
  3. sharp — with an edge
  4. firm — a company
  5. scale — for weighing
  6. scale — in music
  7. file — a tool
  8. pound — for dogs
  9. sharp — clever
  10. swing — to play on
  11. firm — steady
  12. scale — size or range
  13. swing — in golf
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. sharp — exactly
  16. pound — a weight
  17. file — a document
  18. swing — music
  19. degree — an amount
  20. temple — a place of worship
  21. degree — temperature
  22. file — a line of people
  23. temple — side of the head
  24. pound — to hit hard

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