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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. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  2. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  13. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. That must've been a ________________.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — for weighing
  2. scale — size or range
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. ground — a position
  5. drill — a practice
  6. march — the month
  7. scale — in music
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. ground — the earth
  10. degree — an amount
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. rush — to hurry
  13. drill — army training
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. rush — a thrill
  16. degree — from a university
  17. degree — temperature
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. march — the month
  20. rush — hurry
  21. ground — crushed
  22. mine — for digging
  23. drill — the tool
  24. march — music

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