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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'd like to play a game of ________________.
  2. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. You don't need to ________________ round.
  9. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  10. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  16. We're almost out of ________________.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. The ________________ went through the wall.
  20. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  23. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  24. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the sport
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. degree — an amount
  4. rock — music
  5. degree — from a university
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. land — to come down
  8. pop — to visit
  9. squash — to crush
  10. fall — to drop
  11. chair — a leader
  12. pop — music
  13. squash — the vegetable
  14. land — a country
  15. nail — on a finger
  16. pop — soda
  17. degree — temperature
  18. land — ground
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. rock — a stone
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. rock — to move gently
  23. fall — the season
  24. fall — to drop

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