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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. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  2. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  8. The ________________ took off on time.
  9. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  10. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  11. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  12. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  13. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  23. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  24. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — gave birth
  2. fine — a penalty
  3. degree — from a university
  4. board — a committee
  5. cell — a phone
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. plane — a tool
  8. plane — an aircraft
  9. scale — in music
  10. fine — high quality
  11. bore — to tire
  12. board — a flat piece
  13. board — to get on
  14. degree — temperature
  15. shower — to wash
  16. cell — in biology
  17. bore — to drill
  18. degree — an amount
  19. scale — for weighing
  20. shower — rain
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. fine — all right
  23. scale — size or range
  24. plane — in geometry

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