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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 116 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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  5. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  8. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. This piece is in a major ________________.
  11. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  12. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  13. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  14. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  17. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  18. Have you met the new head ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. pound — to hit hard
  3. degree — an amount
  4. rule — government
  5. snap — to snap out of it
  6. degree — temperature
  7. coach — pulled by horses
  8. key — for a lock
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. key — in music
  11. pound — for dogs
  12. rule — a law
  13. key — the most important part
  14. rule — to rule out
  15. degree — from a university
  16. pound — a weight
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. coach — a trainer

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