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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. We're almost out of ________________.
  2. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  3. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  4. That was ________________ to happen.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. Have you found your soul ________________?
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  15. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  16. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  17. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  18. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  19. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  22. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  23. You don't need to ________________ round.
  24. 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. pop — soda
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. pass — to succeed
  4. bound — certain
  5. capital — money
  6. pass — a permit
  7. mate — a friend
  8. stock — shares
  9. mate — a partner
  10. capital — a city
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. degree — from a university
  14. bound — tied together
  15. bound — obliged
  16. stick — to attach or keep to
  17. stock — goods
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. pass — to spend time
  20. degree — temperature
  21. pop — music
  22. mate — to breed
  23. pop — to visit
  24. 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