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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. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  4. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  5. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  8. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  16. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  17. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  18. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  19. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. jam — in traffic
  2. degree — from a university
  3. wake — before a funeral
  4. jam — a tight spot
  5. bear — the animal
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. rule — a law
  8. present — there
  9. capital — money
  10. content — happy
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. present — the time now
  13. degree — an amount
  14. degree — temperature
  15. jam — to spread on bread
  16. bear — to put up with
  17. present — a gift
  18. rule — government
  19. wake — a trail
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. rule — to rule out
  22. content — the amount
  23. capital — a city
  24. bear — the animal

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