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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. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. My mare is ________________ in color.
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  7. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  8. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. The tickets are free of ________________.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  15. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  16. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. pound — a weight
  2. spring — of water
  3. degree — from a university
  4. bay — a horse colour
  5. land — ground
  6. pound — for dogs
  7. charge — electricity
  8. bay — a part of the sea
  9. spring — the season
  10. degree — temperature
  11. charge — a price
  12. land — a country
  13. spring — a coil
  14. pound — to hit hard
  15. bay — to keep at bay
  16. charge — in control
  17. land — to come down
  18. degree — an amount

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