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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: drill · stick · mug · degree · wound · fork · pit · capital

  1. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  4. Where did you ________________ them?
  5. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  6. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  7. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  11. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  22. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — to attach or keep to
  2. wound — an injury
  3. drill — a practice
  4. mug — to rob
  5. drill — the tool
  6. fork — a garden tool
  7. mug — a cup
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. mug — a face
  11. pit — a hole
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. degree — temperature
  15. degree — an amount
  16. wound — an injury
  17. pit — a fruit stone
  18. capital — money
  19. fork — in a road
  20. degree — from a university
  21. drill — army training
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. capital — a city
  24. pit — in a race

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