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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. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  2. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  3. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  10. What do you think of the new ________________?
  11. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  12. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  13. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  14. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  18. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — for dogs
  2. cabinet — a cupboard
  3. fork — to eat with
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. degree — an amount
  6. file — a tool
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. degree — temperature
  9. bowl — a dish
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. wake — a trail
  12. bowl — a football final
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. pound — to hit hard
  15. fork — in a road
  16. degree — from a university
  17. fork — a garden tool
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. bowl — to roll
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. file — a line of people
  23. file — a document
  24. pound — a weight

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