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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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Word bank
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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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. This piece is in a major ________________.
  9. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. David sat on the ________________.
  14. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  15. The King held a masked ________________.
  16. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  17. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  18. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  21. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  24. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. tear — from crying
  3. degree — temperature
  4. tear — from crying
  5. pass — a permit
  6. swing — music
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. key — in music
  9. fork — a garden tool
  10. tear — to rip
  11. ball — a round shape
  12. degree — an amount
  13. swing — to play on
  14. swing — in golf
  15. ball — a dance
  16. pass — to succeed
  17. key — for a lock
  18. ball — a great time
  19. hand — in cards
  20. fork — in a road
  21. fork — to eat with
  22. degree — from a university
  23. key — the most important part
  24. pass — to spend time

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