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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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
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: drill · pit · spell · pitcher · degree · plane · safe · present

  1. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  4. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  10. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  16. The ________________ took off on time.
  17. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  22. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  23. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a hole
  2. spell — letters
  3. safe — out of danger
  4. pit — in a race
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. pit — a fruit stone
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. present — there
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. drill — a practice
  12. drill — army training
  13. present — a gift
  14. degree — from a university
  15. spell — a short time
  16. plane — an aircraft
  17. present — the time now
  18. degree — temperature
  19. plane — in geometry
  20. degree — an amount
  21. drill — the tool
  22. plane — a tool
  23. safe — a strongbox
  24. spell — magic

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