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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. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  11. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. Where did you ________________ them?
  15. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  16. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  17. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  18. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. net — after costs
  3. fine — all right
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. net — in sport
  6. mug — a cup
  7. land — to come down
  8. rock — to move gently
  9. mine — for digging
  10. fork — a garden tool
  11. fine — a penalty
  12. degree — from a university
  13. land — a country
  14. mug — to rob
  15. fine — high quality
  16. fork — to eat with
  17. rock — a stone
  18. mug — a face
  19. land — ground
  20. degree — an amount
  21. rock — music
  22. net — for catching
  23. fork — in a road
  24. mine — an explosive

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