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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. That must've been a ________________.
  2. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  3. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  19. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  24. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — a thrill
  2. wake — a trail
  3. wake — to stop sleeping
  4. stem — to come from
  5. drill — the tool
  6. drill — a practice
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. rush — hurry
  9. drill — army training
  10. track — a path
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. track — to keep track
  13. degree — temperature
  14. degree — from a university
  15. rush — to hurry
  16. degree — an amount
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. net — for catching
  19. stem — a stem cell
  20. sharp — clever
  21. net — after costs
  22. net — in sport
  23. track — a song
  24. wake — before a funeral

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