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

  1. He was locked up in a ________________.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  5. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  6. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  7. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  8. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  11. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  12. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  13. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  14. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  17. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  18. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. degree — an amount
  3. degree — from a university
  4. pound — to hit hard
  5. rule — a law
  6. pound — a weight
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. toast — bread
  9. cell — a phone
  10. rule — to rule out
  11. pound — for dogs
  12. cell — in biology
  13. rule — government
  14. toast — the most admired
  15. degree — temperature
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. toast — a drink to someone
  18. racket — a loud noise

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