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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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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 · degree · hand · bass · track · last · lie · calf

  1. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  2. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  3. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  8. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  9. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  10. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  20. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  21. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  22. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the fish
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. drill — the tool
  4. degree — an amount
  5. hand — in cards
  6. drill — a practice
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. calf — of the leg
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. bass — low music
  11. last — to go on
  12. degree — temperature
  13. track — to keep track
  14. last — finally
  15. drill — army training
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. bass — the instrument
  18. hand — help
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. track — a song
  21. lie — to recline
  22. track — a path
  23. degree — from a university
  24. last — final

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