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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 was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  5. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  8. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  9. He works in a ________________ mill.
  10. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  11. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  12. The King held a masked ________________.
  13. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  14. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  15. She's very handy with a ________________.
  16. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  21. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  22. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  23. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  24. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. degree — an amount
  3. degree — temperature
  4. board — a flat piece
  5. cap — of ice
  6. drill — a practice
  7. bear — the animal
  8. ball — a round shape
  9. saw — the tool
  10. bear — to put up with
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. ball — a dance
  13. cap — a hat
  14. saw — past of 'see'
  15. saw — the tool
  16. bear — the animal
  17. drill — army training
  18. cap — a lid
  19. degree — from a university
  20. board — to get on
  21. drill — the tool
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. board — a committee
  24. patient — calm and waiting

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