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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: leaves · file · drill · cell · degree · fork

  1. He was locked up in a ________________.
  2. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  3. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  11. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  18. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. leaves — lets stay
  3. drill — a practice
  4. degree — an amount
  5. drill — the tool
  6. file — a document
  7. file — a tool
  8. fork — in a road
  9. file — a line of people
  10. leaves — to go away
  11. leaves — of a tree
  12. cell — a phone
  13. degree — from a university
  14. drill — army training
  15. degree — temperature
  16. cell — in biology
  17. fork — a garden tool
  18. fork — to eat with

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