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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. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  7. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  8. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. This piece is in a major ________________.
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  20. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  21. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  22. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. shower — to wash
  3. scale — size or range
  4. land — to come down
  5. net — in sport
  6. key — for a lock
  7. scale — in music
  8. trunk — of a car
  9. degree — an amount
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. degree — temperature
  12. key — in music
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. land — ground
  15. ruler — a monarch
  16. net — for catching
  17. degree — from a university
  18. shower — rain
  19. key — the most important part
  20. trunk — of a tree
  21. ruler — for measuring
  22. net — after costs
  23. land — a country
  24. ruler — for measuring

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