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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. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  2. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  8. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  24. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — a company
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. firm — steady
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. degree — an amount
  7. fork — to eat with
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. band — a music group
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. band — a ring
  14. land — to come down
  15. mouse — for a computer
  16. land — a country
  17. fork — in a road
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. degree — temperature
  21. land — ground
  22. degree — from a university
  23. firm — decided
  24. fork — a garden tool

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