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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. When are we going to ________________?
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. When will it ________________ you to start?
  5. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  6. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  7. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  8. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. Have you met the new head ________________?
  13. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  14. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  15. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  16. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  22. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. degree — from a university
  3. net — in sport
  4. suit — to fit
  5. scale — in music
  6. pass — to succeed
  7. coach — pulled by horses
  8. suit — in cards
  9. degree — an amount
  10. drill — the tool
  11. land — a country
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. pass — to spend time
  14. drill — army training
  15. suit — clothes
  16. pass — a permit
  17. land — ground
  18. net — after costs
  19. scale — for weighing
  20. net — for catching
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. drill — a practice
  23. degree — temperature
  24. scale — size or range

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