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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. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  2. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  3. This piece is in a major ________________.
  4. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  7. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  11. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. Did you ________________ the meat?
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  19. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  20. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  23. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  24. That was ________________ to happen.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a fruit stone
  2. drill — the tool
  3. key — in music
  4. drill — army training
  5. season — of the year
  6. key — the most important part
  7. key — for a lock
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. shower — to wash
  10. bound — obliged
  11. pit — in a race
  12. season — in sport
  13. degree — an amount
  14. season — to add flavour
  15. degree — temperature
  16. drill — a practice
  17. degree — from a university
  18. safe — a strongbox
  19. safe — out of danger
  20. bound — tied together
  21. shower — rain
  22. pit — a hole
  23. safe — out of danger
  24. bound — certain

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