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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. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  15. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  16. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  20. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  21. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. degree — from a university
  4. band — a music group
  5. object — a thing
  6. spring — of water
  7. band — a ring
  8. stick — to attach or keep to
  9. rash — hasty
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. degree — an amount
  12. rock — a stone
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. rash — a series
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. object — to protest
  17. degree — temperature
  18. spring — the season
  19. object — an aim
  20. rock — to move gently
  21. rock — music
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. rash — on the skin
  24. spring — a coil

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