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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: fork · mate · roll · deal · stick · row · scale · degree

  1. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  2. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  5. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  6. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  13. Have you found your soul ________________?
  14. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  15. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. We're on a ________________ here.
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  21. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  22. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  23. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. row — to paddle
  2. fork — to eat with
  3. mate — to breed
  4. mate — a friend
  5. roll — a list
  6. roll — a cake
  7. degree — an amount
  8. fork — a garden tool
  9. fork — in a road
  10. row — a line
  11. degree — from a university
  12. deal — a big deal
  13. mate — a partner
  14. deal — to handle
  15. deal — an agreement
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. roll — on a roll
  18. scale — in music
  19. degree — temperature
  20. scale — size or range
  21. stick — to attach or keep to
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. scale — for weighing

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