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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 116 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 need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  2. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  3. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  6. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  7. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  10. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. Don't do anything ________________.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  20. It's one o'clock ________________.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  23. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  24. We had a fire ________________ at school today.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. rash — on the skin
  3. bass — the fish
  4. spring — of water
  5. bass — low music
  6. kick — in football
  7. sharp — with an edge
  8. fork — in a road
  9. fork — a garden tool
  10. fork — to eat with
  11. degree — temperature
  12. sharp — clever
  13. spring — a coil
  14. degree — from a university
  15. rash — hasty
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. kick — with a leg
  18. degree — an amount
  19. bass — the instrument
  20. sharp — exactly
  21. spring — the season
  22. drill — army training
  23. rash — a series
  24. drill — a practice

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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