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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 120 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 seem to be developing a ________________.
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  13. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  14. He is an ace ________________.
  15. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  16. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  17. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  18. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  19. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  20. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  21. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  22. There's no middle ________________.
  23. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  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. rash — on the skin
  2. rash — hasty
  3. degree — temperature
  4. board — a committee
  5. file — a tool
  6. ground — crushed
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. file — a document
  9. degree — an amount
  10. file — a line of people
  11. ground — the earth
  12. bass — the instrument
  13. pit — a fruit stone
  14. pitcher — in baseball
  15. rash — a series
  16. board — a flat piece
  17. bass — the fish
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. board — to get on
  20. pit — a hole
  21. pit — in a race
  22. ground — a position
  23. bass — low music
  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