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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. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  4. That was ________________ to happen.
  5. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  15. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  18. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. degree — temperature
  3. bound — tied together
  4. bound — certain
  5. patient — calm and waiting
  6. court — of law
  7. file — a line of people
  8. stem — to come from
  9. drill — army training
  10. file — a document
  11. degree — from a university
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. drill — a practice
  16. court — for sport
  17. mouse — for a computer
  18. mouse — the animal
  19. court — of a king
  20. file — a tool
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. degree — an amount
  23. bound — obliged
  24. stem — a stem cell

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