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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 ________________ went through the wall.
  2. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  3. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  4. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  7. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  8. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  12. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  21. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  22. The ________________ took off on time.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. rash — a series
  3. cue — a signal
  4. rash — on the skin
  5. squash — to crush
  6. nail — on a finger
  7. squash — the sport
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. rash — hasty
  10. wound — an injury
  11. plane — a tool
  12. squash — the vegetable
  13. wound — an injury
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. degree — an amount
  16. plane — in geometry
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. cue — for pool
  19. degree — temperature
  20. wake — before a funeral
  21. cue — a hint
  22. plane — an aircraft
  23. wake — a trail
  24. degree — from a university

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