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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. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  4. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  5. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  6. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. The ________________ went through the wall.
  10. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  17. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  18. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  21. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  22. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  23. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  24. The spa offers ________________ extensions.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. degree — temperature
  3. nail — on a finger
  4. bass — low music
  5. pit — in a race
  6. firm — decided
  7. march — the month
  8. degree — an amount
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. pit — a fruit stone
  11. wind — moving air
  12. lash — to lash out
  13. march — the month
  14. wind — moving air
  15. march — music
  16. firm — steady
  17. firm — a company
  18. bass — the instrument
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. bass — the fish
  22. lash — a whip stroke
  23. pit — a hole
  24. lash — an eyelash

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