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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. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. That must've been a ________________.
  4. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  5. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  8. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  9. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  10. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  11. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  12. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. We're on a ________________ here.
  15. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  16. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  19. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  20. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  21. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  22. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. degree — from a university
  3. rush — a thrill
  4. fork — a garden tool
  5. rest — what's left
  6. degree — temperature
  7. fork — in a road
  8. roll — a list
  9. craft — a skill
  10. rush — hurry
  11. present — the time now
  12. rest — what's left
  13. last — to go on
  14. roll — on a roll
  15. craft — boats
  16. rest — a break
  17. last — final
  18. fork — to eat with
  19. present — a gift
  20. rush — to hurry
  21. present — there
  22. craft — a handicraft
  23. last — finally
  24. roll — a cake

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