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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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Word bank
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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 · toast · safe · pound · file

  1. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  2. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  3. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  4. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  5. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  10. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  11. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  12. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  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. fork — a garden tool
  2. safe — out of danger
  3. pound — for dogs
  4. pound — a weight
  5. safe — a strongbox
  6. file — a tool
  7. pound — to hit hard
  8. file — a document
  9. toast — bread
  10. toast — the most admired
  11. fork — to eat with
  12. safe — out of danger
  13. fork — in a road
  14. file — a line of people
  15. degree — temperature
  16. degree — from a university
  17. toast — a drink to someone
  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