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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. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  3. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  4. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  5. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. We're almost out of ________________.
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  13. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. You don't need to ________________ round.
  20. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  21. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  22. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. drill — the tool
  3. drill — a practice
  4. bank — for money
  5. pit — a hole
  6. degree — temperature
  7. degree — from a university
  8. clip — for paper
  9. rash — hasty
  10. pop — soda
  11. clip — to cut
  12. sharp — with an edge
  13. rash — on the skin
  14. clip — a video
  15. bank — for money
  16. degree — an amount
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. rash — a series
  19. pop — to visit
  20. pit — a fruit stone
  21. pop — music
  22. pit — in a race
  23. drill — army training
  24. bank — of a river

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