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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. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  3. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  4. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  5. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  8. It's one o'clock ________________.
  9. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  10. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  17. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  18. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  21. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  22. When was this ________________ built?
  23. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  24. Boris sat near the fire ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. pitch — a sales talk
  3. pitch — completely
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. sharp — with an edge
  6. degree — temperature
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. sharp — exactly
  9. pit — in a race
  10. pitch — a sports field
  11. sharp — clever
  12. wave — with your hand
  13. spring — the season
  14. degree — from a university
  15. spring — a coil
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. mouse — for a computer
  18. temple — side of the head
  19. spring — of water
  20. pit — a fruit stone
  21. wave — a sudden rise
  22. temple — a place of worship
  23. wave — of the sea
  24. pit — a hole

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