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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. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  4. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  5. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  6. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  11. The tickets are free of ________________.
  12. The ________________ took off on time.
  13. She's very handy with a ________________.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  20. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  21. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  22. How do you ________________ your surname?
  23. The King held a masked ________________.
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. band — a music group
  3. craft — boats
  4. ball — a round shape
  5. plane — a tool
  6. plane — in geometry
  7. degree — temperature
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. degree — from a university
  10. craft — a skill
  11. charge — a price
  12. plane — an aircraft
  13. saw — the tool
  14. band — a ring
  15. spell — magic
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. ball — a great time
  18. spell — a short time
  19. charge — electricity
  20. craft — a handicraft
  21. charge — in control
  22. spell — letters
  23. ball — a dance
  24. saw — the tool

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