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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. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  2. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  7. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  8. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  12. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  13. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  14. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. The ________________ went through the wall.
  20. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  24. The people resisted their cruel ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the fish
  2. face — part of the head
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. lean — to rest against
  5. degree — an amount
  6. bass — low music
  7. ruler — for measuring
  8. nail — on a finger
  9. degree — from a university
  10. degree — temperature
  11. lean — to bend
  12. face — to point toward
  13. ruler — for measuring
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. file — a line of people
  16. lean — thin
  17. file — a document
  18. mine — for digging
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. face — to confront
  21. file — a tool
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. bass — the instrument
  24. ruler — a monarch

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