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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. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  2. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. I can't ________________ this cold.
  7. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  8. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  12. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  13. When was this ________________ built?
  14. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  15. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  16. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. stand — for spectators
  3. net — after costs
  4. shower — rain
  5. degree — an amount
  6. stand — to bear
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. drill — army training
  9. net — in sport
  10. shower — to wash
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. fine — a penalty
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. temple — side of the head
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. calf — of the leg
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. drill — a practice
  19. fine — high quality
  20. degree — from a university
  21. degree — temperature
  22. fine — all right
  23. net — for catching
  24. stand — on your feet

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