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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. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  2. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  5. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  6. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  7. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  8. I can't ________________ this cold.
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. The King held a masked ________________.
  13. The ________________ went through the wall.
  14. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  17. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  22. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  23. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  24. He hit the ball with his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. degree — temperature
  4. stand — on your feet
  5. nail — on a finger
  6. racket — a loud noise
  7. ball — a round shape
  8. stand — to bear
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. wound — an injury
  11. spell — letters
  12. ball — a dance
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. ball — a great time
  15. wound — an injury
  16. scale — size or range
  17. scale — in music
  18. degree — from a university
  19. spell — a short time
  20. degree — an amount
  21. spell — magic
  22. wound — past of 'wind'
  23. stand — for spectators
  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