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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. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  7. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  8. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  11. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  12. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  13. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  24. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the instrument
  2. degree — from a university
  3. degree — temperature
  4. bark — to shout
  5. land — to come down
  6. fine — a penalty
  7. bass — low music
  8. cap — a hat
  9. land — a country
  10. fine — high quality
  11. cap — a lid
  12. bark — of a tree
  13. bark — a dog's sound
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. cap — of ice
  16. degree — an amount
  17. bass — the fish
  18. band — a ring
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. fine — all right
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. land — ground
  23. chair — a leader
  24. band — a music group

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