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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. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. The King held a masked ________________.
  4. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  5. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  6. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  7. That was ________________ to happen.
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. What do you think of the new ________________?
  10. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  11. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  12. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  16. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  17. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  18. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  19. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  20. He is an ace ________________.
  21. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  24. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — an agreement
  2. degree — an amount
  3. ball — a dance
  4. fall — to drop
  5. scale — for weighing
  6. bound — tied together
  7. bound — certain
  8. fall — to drop
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. fall — the season
  11. ball — a great time
  12. scale — in music
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. degree — temperature
  15. bound — obliged
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. cabinet — a cupboard
  18. deal — a big deal
  19. deal — to handle
  20. pitcher — in baseball
  21. ball — a round shape
  22. degree — from a university
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. scale — size or range

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