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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 120 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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: degree · fork · wave · file · fall · mine

  1. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  12. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  17. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. file — a line of people
  2. degree — temperature
  3. wave — of the sea
  4. fall — the season
  5. file — a document
  6. fork — a garden tool
  7. mine — for digging
  8. fork — to eat with
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. degree — from a university
  11. wave — a sudden rise
  12. fall — to drop
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. file — a tool
  15. fall — to drop
  16. wave — with your hand
  17. fork — in a road
  18. degree — an amount

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