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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. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  6. The ________________ market has crashed.
  7. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  8. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  13. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. The ________________ took off on time.
  20. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  21. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  22. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  23. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  24. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — a short time
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. degree — an amount
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. stock — a soup base
  6. stock — shares
  7. fan — to cool the air
  8. stock — goods
  9. degree — from a university
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. spell — magic
  14. degree — temperature
  15. plane — a tool
  16. hand — in cards
  17. spell — letters
  18. band — a ring
  19. plane — an aircraft
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. plane — in geometry
  23. hand — help
  24. band — a music group

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