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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 120 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. Have you found your soul ________________?
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  4. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. That was ________________ to happen.
  7. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  8. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  9. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  13. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  14. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  17. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  18. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  19. What do you think of the new ________________?
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a partner
  2. degree — from a university
  3. cabinet — a cupboard
  4. deal — an agreement
  5. bound — tied together
  6. bound — certain
  7. deal — to handle
  8. deal — a big deal
  9. mate — a friend
  10. degree — temperature
  11. bound — obliged
  12. mate — to breed
  13. fork — a garden tool
  14. drill — the tool
  15. degree — an amount
  16. fork — to eat with
  17. fork — in a road
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. drill — a practice
  21. row — to paddle
  22. drill — army training
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. row — a line

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