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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. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  2. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. What do you think of the new ________________?
  9. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  10. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  17. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  21. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  24. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — a cupboard
  2. scale — size or range
  3. wound — an injury
  4. scale — in music
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. band — a music group
  7. row — a line
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. cue — a signal
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. degree — an amount
  12. cue — for pool
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. band — a ring
  15. wound — an injury
  16. present — the time now
  17. cue — a hint
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. degree — temperature
  20. band — a rubber band
  21. present — there
  22. row — to paddle
  23. present — a gift
  24. degree — from a university

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