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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. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  5. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  6. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  7. Have you met the new head ________________?
  8. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  11. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  12. The King held a masked ________________.
  13. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  14. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  17. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  18. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  19. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  20. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  21. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  22. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  23. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  24. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. face — to confront
  3. degree — temperature
  4. fork — a garden tool
  5. pit — a hole
  6. coach — pulled by horses
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. pit — a fruit stone
  9. degree — an amount
  10. bore — gave birth
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. ball — a dance
  13. ball — a round shape
  14. bass — the fish
  15. degree — from a university
  16. pit — in a race
  17. bore — to drill
  18. bore — to tire
  19. face — part of the head
  20. fork — in a road
  21. bass — the instrument
  22. face — to point toward
  23. fork — to eat with
  24. bass — low music

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