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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. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. Have you met the new head ________________?
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — in a race
  2. degree — an amount
  3. degree — from a university
  4. shower — rain
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. drill — army training
  7. coach — pulled by horses
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. pit — a hole
  10. drill — the tool
  11. craft — a handicraft
  12. spring — of water
  13. craft — boats
  14. spring — a coil
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. shower — to wash
  17. craft — a skill
  18. degree — temperature
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. drill — a practice
  21. pit — a fruit stone
  22. spring — the season
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. pitcher — a jug

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