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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 soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  2. When will it ________________ you to start?
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  5. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  8. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  9. He works in a ________________ mill.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. She's very handy with a ________________.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  21. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  22. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  23. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  24. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — army training
  2. suit — to fit
  3. degree — from a university
  4. object — to protest
  5. suit — in cards
  6. chair — a leader
  7. chair — to sit on
  8. object — a thing
  9. saw — the tool
  10. drill — a practice
  11. game — a match
  12. degree — temperature
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. saw — past of 'see'
  15. degree — an amount
  16. chair — a professorship
  17. drill — the tool
  18. saw — the tool
  19. game — wild animals
  20. club — for golf
  21. object — an aim
  22. suit — clothes
  23. club — a group
  24. club — for dancing

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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