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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.

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: fork · drill · spell · row · degree · bowl · pitcher · wake

  1. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  6. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  9. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. He is an ace ________________.
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  19. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  23. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  24. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. degree — temperature
  3. wake — before a funeral
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. bowl — a dish
  6. spell — a short time
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. drill — army training
  9. drill — the tool
  10. row — a line
  11. bowl — a football final
  12. row — to paddle
  13. pitcher — in baseball
  14. wake — a trail
  15. degree — from a university
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. spell — letters
  18. fork — a garden tool
  19. bowl — to roll
  20. drill — a practice
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. spell — magic
  23. fork — to eat with
  24. fork — in a road

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