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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. He works in a ________________ mill.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  6. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  9. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  10. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  11. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  17. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  18. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  21. She's very handy with a ________________.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. We were using a ________________ as a seat.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. spring — of water
  3. saw — past of 'see'
  4. court — for sport
  5. drill — army training
  6. bass — the instrument
  7. degree — temperature
  8. rock — to move gently
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. court — of law
  12. degree — an amount
  13. bass — low music
  14. degree — from a university
  15. spring — a coil
  16. drill — the tool
  17. hide — animal skin
  18. bass — the fish
  19. drill — a practice
  20. rock — music
  21. saw — the tool
  22. spring — the season
  23. court — of a king
  24. rock — a stone

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