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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. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  3. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  4. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. Add some ________________ pepper to it.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. drill — the tool
  3. stick — to attach or keep to
  4. kick — in football
  5. drill — a practice
  6. file — a tool
  7. wind — moving air
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. kick — a thrill
  10. degree — from a university
  11. degree — an amount
  12. ground — the earth
  13. drill — army training
  14. shower — rain
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. wind — moving air
  17. ground — a position
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. file — a line of people
  21. shower — to wash
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. file — a document
  24. ground — crushed

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