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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. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  5. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  6. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  11. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  12. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  17. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  20. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  21. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  22. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. kid — to tease
  3. degree — from a university
  4. pass — to spend time
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. rock — to move gently
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. degree — temperature
  9. drill — army training
  10. fan — to cool the air
  11. rock — a stone
  12. pass — to succeed
  13. degree — an amount
  14. present — there
  15. hand — help
  16. rock — music
  17. drill — a practice
  18. present — the time now
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. present — a gift
  21. drill — the tool
  22. pass — a permit
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. kid — child

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