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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. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  5. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  6. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  7. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  8. The tickets are free of ________________.
  9. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — a garden tool
  2. degree — from a university
  3. degree — temperature
  4. drill — army training
  5. charge — in control
  6. track — a song
  7. leaves — of a tree
  8. charge — a price
  9. track — to keep track
  10. kid — child
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. drill — a practice
  13. leaves — lets stay
  14. degree — an amount
  15. fork — in a road
  16. hand — help
  17. fork — to eat with
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. hand — in cards
  20. charge — electricity
  21. kid — to tease
  22. leaves — to go away
  23. drill — the tool
  24. track — a path

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