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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. How do you ________________ your surname?
  2. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  4. The ________________ went through the wall.
  5. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. That must've been a ________________.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  13. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  14. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  15. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  16. I can't ________________ this cold.
  17. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  18. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  19. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  20. Have you settled on a ________________?
  21. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  22. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — letters
  2. rush — hurry
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. fork — to eat with
  6. degree — temperature
  7. rush — a thrill
  8. degree — an amount
  9. degree — from a university
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. stand — for spectators
  13. rush — to hurry
  14. date — the fruit
  15. spell — a short time
  16. stand — to bear
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. fork — in a road
  19. nail — on a finger
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. stand — on your feet
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. spell — magic
  24. fork — a garden 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