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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. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  8. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  9. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  10. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  11. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  12. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  13. He is an ace ________________.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  23. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  24. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — a loud noise
  2. degree — from a university
  3. pound — for dogs
  4. rule — a law
  5. rule — government
  6. drill — army training
  7. rule — to rule out
  8. lean — thin
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. lean — to rest against
  12. fork — in a road
  13. pitcher — in baseball
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. degree — temperature
  16. fork — a garden tool
  17. drill — the tool
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. drill — a practice
  20. pound — a weight
  21. degree — an amount
  22. lean — to bend
  23. fork — to eat with
  24. pound — to hit hard

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