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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. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  9. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  10. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  11. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  17. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  20. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  21. My mare is ________________ in color.
  22. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. degree — from a university
  3. bay — a part of the sea
  4. content — happy
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. tear — to rip
  7. degree — an amount
  8. club — for dancing
  9. club — a group
  10. vault — a safe
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. degree — temperature
  13. tear — from crying
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. vault — in gymnastics
  17. bay — to keep at bay
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. vault — an arched ceiling
  20. perch — the fish
  21. bay — a horse colour
  22. club — for golf
  23. tear — from crying
  24. mine — for digging

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