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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. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  2. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  5. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  6. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  7. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  8. We're on a ________________ here.
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. I'll be taking the ________________.
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  18. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  19. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  22. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  23. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  24. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — a company
  2. roll — a cake
  3. degree — temperature
  4. scale — in music
  5. fork — in a road
  6. tube — a container
  7. fork — a garden tool
  8. roll — on a roll
  9. race — a contest
  10. tube — the underground
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. degree — an amount
  13. race — the arms race
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. firm — steady
  16. race — humankind
  17. fork — to eat with
  18. scale — size or range
  19. firm — decided
  20. degree — from a university
  21. scale — for weighing
  22. snap — to click
  23. tube — in a tire
  24. roll — a list

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