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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 ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  10. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  11. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  12. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  13. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  14. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  15. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  19. The ________________ went through the wall.
  20. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  24. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. degree — an amount
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. shower — rain
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. degree — temperature
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. kid — to tease
  9. bass — the instrument
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. leaves — lets stay
  12. leaves — of a tree
  13. leaves — to go away
  14. lie — an untruth
  15. nail — on a finger
  16. kid — child
  17. shower — to wash
  18. bass — the fish
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. bass — low music
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. degree — from a university
  23. lie — to recline
  24. nail — for a hammer

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