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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. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  2. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  8. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  11. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  14. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  15. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  19. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  20. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. content — videos and posts
  2. cue — a signal
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. content — the amount
  5. bark — to shout
  6. ground — crushed
  7. season — of the year
  8. rash — on the skin
  9. ground — a position
  10. cue — a hint
  11. vault — an arched ceiling
  12. degree — an amount
  13. season — in sport
  14. rash — a series
  15. cue — for pool
  16. content — happy
  17. degree — from a university
  18. bark — a dog's sound
  19. bark — of a tree
  20. vault — a safe
  21. rash — hasty
  22. vault — in gymnastics
  23. ground — the earth
  24. degree — temperature

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