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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. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  2. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  3. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  14. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  19. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  20. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  21. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  22. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  23. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  24. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. fork — a garden tool
  3. fork — to eat with
  4. stock — shares
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. degree — an amount
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. ground — a position
  9. vault — an arched ceiling
  10. ground — the earth
  11. rest — what's left
  12. drill — a practice
  13. rest — a break
  14. rest — what's left
  15. degree — from a university
  16. degree — temperature
  17. drill — army training
  18. fork — in a road
  19. stock — goods
  20. vault — in gymnastics
  21. vault — a safe
  22. ground — crushed
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. racket — for tennis

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