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

Word bank: wind · pit · patient · pass · degree · key · club · tube

  1. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  4. This piece is in a major ________________.
  5. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  6. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  7. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  10. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  11. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  12. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  13. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  18. I'll be taking the ________________.
  19. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  24. You can't go backstage without a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. key — in music
  5. key — for a lock
  6. club — for golf
  7. club — for dancing
  8. wind — moving air
  9. pit — a hole
  10. key — the most important part
  11. club — a group
  12. pass — to succeed
  13. tube — a container
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. degree — from a university
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. pit — in a race
  18. tube — the underground
  19. pass — to spend time
  20. degree — temperature
  21. patient — calm and waiting
  22. wind — moving air
  23. pit — a fruit stone
  24. pass — a permit

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