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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. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  2. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  3. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  4. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  5. The ________________ took off on time.
  6. You don't need to ________________ round.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  9. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. The ________________ went through the wall.
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. We're almost out of ________________.
  17. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  24. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — on a finger
  2. deal — a big deal
  3. fork — in a road
  4. plane — a tool
  5. plane — an aircraft
  6. pop — to visit
  7. drill — army training
  8. deal — an agreement
  9. deal — to handle
  10. drill — the tool
  11. degree — an amount
  12. file — a document
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. drill — a practice
  15. degree — from a university
  16. pop — soda
  17. fork — to eat with
  18. plane — in geometry
  19. degree — temperature
  20. file — a line of people
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. file — a tool
  23. pop — music
  24. fork — a garden tool

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