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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. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  5. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  6. She's very handy with a ________________.
  7. He works in a ________________ mill.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  13. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  14. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  15. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  16. David sat on the ________________.
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  19. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  20. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  21. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  22. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  23. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  24. I would like to have a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. rest — what's left
  3. degree — from a university
  4. saw — past of 'see'
  5. rest — what's left
  6. saw — the tool
  7. saw — the tool
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. mine — for digging
  10. degree — temperature
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. swing — in golf
  13. bowl — to roll
  14. bowl — a dish
  15. track — to keep track
  16. swing — to play on
  17. swing — music
  18. track — a path
  19. track — a song
  20. bowl — a football final
  21. bass — the instrument
  22. bass — the fish
  23. bass — low music
  24. rest — a break

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