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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. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. I've got to change the light ________________.
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  8. She's very handy with a ________________.
  9. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. He works in a ________________ mill.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. The light ________________ burned out.
  15. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  16. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  20. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  23. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. degree — an amount
  3. bulb — for light
  4. drill — a practice
  5. can — to be able to
  6. clip — a video
  7. can — a tin
  8. saw — the tool
  9. drill — the tool
  10. degree — from a university
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. saw — the tool
  13. bat — the animal
  14. bulb — for light
  15. present — the time now
  16. drill — army training
  17. present — there
  18. clip — to cut
  19. bulb — of a plant
  20. can — a tin
  21. degree — temperature
  22. present — a gift
  23. saw — past of 'see'
  24. clip — for paper

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