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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. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  4. She's very handy with a ________________.
  5. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  6. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  7. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  8. I'll be taking the ________________.
  9. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  10. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. He works in a ________________ mill.
  13. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  16. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  17. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  18. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  19. The King held a masked ________________.
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. It's one o'clock ________________.
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  24. What do you think of the new ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. degree — an amount
  3. cabinet — a cupboard
  4. saw — the tool
  5. saw — past of 'see'
  6. tube — a container
  7. staff — a stick
  8. tube — the underground
  9. snap — to snap out of it
  10. staff — employees
  11. sharp — clever
  12. saw — the tool
  13. snap — to click
  14. degree — temperature
  15. ball — a round shape
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. snap — to speak sharply
  18. staff — employees
  19. ball — a dance
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. sharp — exactly
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. ball — a great time
  24. cabinet — ministers

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