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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 116 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. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  7. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  8. Did you ________________ the button?
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  11. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  12. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  13. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  19. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. This piece is in a major ________________.
  22. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  23. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. club — for golf
  3. press — newspapers
  4. degree — from a university
  5. wind — moving air
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. press — to push
  9. net — for catching
  10. net — in sport
  11. key — for a lock
  12. lie — to recline
  13. key — the most important part
  14. wind — moving air
  15. net — after costs
  16. drill — a practice
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. drill — the tool
  19. club — for dancing
  20. degree — an amount
  21. key — in music
  22. club — a group
  23. press — a publisher
  24. drill — army training

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