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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. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  7. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  8. When was this ________________ built?
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  15. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  16. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. I'll be taking the ________________.
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. The ________________ went through the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — size or range
  2. field — for sport
  3. scale — for weighing
  4. file — a line of people
  5. degree — from a university
  6. tube — in a tire
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. temple — a place of worship
  9. degree — temperature
  10. temple — side of the head
  11. bat — the animal
  12. degree — an amount
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. scale — in music
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. tube — a container
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. tube — the underground
  19. file — a tool
  20. nail — on a finger
  21. field — farmland
  22. file — a document
  23. field — a subject
  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