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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. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  4. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  5. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  6. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  11. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  12. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  13. That must've been a ________________.
  14. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  15. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  16. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  17. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  20. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  21. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  22. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  23. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. spell — magic
  3. craft — a skill
  4. scale — in music
  5. rock — a stone
  6. rock — to move gently
  7. degree — from a university
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. degree — temperature
  10. scale — for weighing
  11. leaves — lets stay
  12. spell — a short time
  13. rush — a thrill
  14. rock — music
  15. craft — boats
  16. leaves — of a tree
  17. leaves — to go away
  18. snap — to click
  19. scale — size or range
  20. snap — to snap out of it
  21. rush — to hurry
  22. craft — a handicraft
  23. rush — hurry
  24. spell — letters

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