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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: sharp · mouse · mine · scale · press · degree · wake · drill

  1. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  2. It's one o'clock ________________.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  7. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. Did you ________________ the button?
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  18. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  19. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  20. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  21. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. sharp — exactly
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. scale — for weighing
  5. degree — an amount
  6. scale — in music
  7. scale — size or range
  8. drill — a practice
  9. press — a publisher
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. press — to push
  12. degree — from a university
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. press — newspapers
  15. wake — a trail
  16. mine — for digging
  17. sharp — clever
  18. mouse — the animal
  19. drill — the tool
  20. wake — to stop sleeping
  21. wake — before a funeral
  22. degree — temperature
  23. mouse — for a computer
  24. drill — army training

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