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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. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  3. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  4. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  7. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  10. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  15. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  16. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  17. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. It's one o'clock ________________.
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. pass — to spend time
  3. fork — to eat with
  4. fork — a garden tool
  5. degree — an amount
  6. track — a song
  7. track — a path
  8. track — to keep track
  9. sharp — with an edge
  10. pass — to succeed
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. last — final
  14. pass — a permit
  15. rock — music
  16. rock — a stone
  17. fork — in a road
  18. last — finally
  19. rock — to move gently
  20. degree — from a university
  21. sharp — exactly
  22. degree — temperature
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. last — to go on

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