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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. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  2. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  5. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  15. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  19. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. My father caught me by the ________________.
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  24. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. fork — a garden tool
  3. degree — an amount
  4. arm — a part of something
  5. vault — in gymnastics
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. racket — a loud noise
  8. wind — moving air
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. vault — an arched ceiling
  11. band — a ring
  12. vault — a safe
  13. wind — moving air
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. fork — to eat with
  16. degree — from a university
  17. band — a music group
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. degree — temperature
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. fork — in a road

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