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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 120 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 university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. Have you found your soul ________________?
  5. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  12. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  13. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  16. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  19. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  24. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. bark — a dog's sound
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. mate — a partner
  5. rule — to rule out
  6. bark — to shout
  7. chair — to sit on
  8. degree — temperature
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. deal — a big deal
  13. rule — a law
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. mate — to breed
  16. deal — to handle
  17. mate — a friend
  18. deal — an agreement
  19. racket — a loud noise
  20. degree — an amount
  21. rule — government
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. chair — a leader
  24. racket — for tennis

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