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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. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  2. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  5. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  6. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  7. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  10. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  11. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  20. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. jam — a tight spot
  3. degree — from a university
  4. net — for catching
  5. jam — to spread on bread
  6. stem — to come from
  7. club — for golf
  8. degree — an amount
  9. stem — a stem cell
  10. net — in sport
  11. mouse — for a computer
  12. degree — temperature
  13. band — a music group
  14. band — a ring
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. game — a match
  17. club — for dancing
  18. net — after costs
  19. jam — in traffic
  20. club — a group
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. game — wild animals
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. mouse — 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