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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 play ________________ in a jazz band.
  2. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  7. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. This piece is in a major ________________.
  11. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  12. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  17. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  18. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the instrument
  2. drill — a practice
  3. degree — temperature
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. fork — to eat with
  7. bass — the fish
  8. ground — the earth
  9. fork — in a road
  10. key — in music
  11. bass — low music
  12. key — for a lock
  13. ground — a position
  14. lie — an untruth
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. lie — to recline
  17. fork — a garden tool
  18. key — the most important part
  19. degree — from a university
  20. ground — crushed
  21. degree — an amount
  22. drill — the tool
  23. drill — army training
  24. mine — for digging

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