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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. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  3. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  4. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  5. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  6. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  7. The ________________ took off on time.
  8. This piece is in a major ________________.
  9. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  10. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  11. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  12. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  13. He is an ace ________________.
  14. I'll be taking the ________________.
  15. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  16. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  19. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  22. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  23. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  24. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. tube — in a tire
  4. pit — a fruit stone
  5. pit — in a race
  6. fork — a garden tool
  7. plane — an aircraft
  8. key — in music
  9. key — for a lock
  10. tube — a container
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. plane — a tool
  13. pitcher — in baseball
  14. tube — the underground
  15. key — the most important part
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. degree — temperature
  18. pit — a hole
  19. fork — in a road
  20. degree — an amount
  21. stick — to attach or keep to
  22. fork — to eat with
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. plane — in geometry

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