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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. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  7. The ________________ went through the wall.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. When will it ________________ you to start?
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  16. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  20. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. suit — in cards
  2. degree — from a university
  3. ground — crushed
  4. degree — an amount
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. mark — a grade
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. shower — rain
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. nail — on a finger
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. suit — to fit
  14. ground — a position
  15. mark — a trace
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. mine — for digging
  18. ground — the earth
  19. suit — clothes
  20. mark — to pay attention
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. snap — to click
  23. shower — to wash
  24. degree — temperature

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