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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. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  3. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  4. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  5. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  17. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  18. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  19. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  23. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  24. This piece is in a major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. firm — decided
  3. key — for a lock
  4. mouse — for a computer
  5. swing — in golf
  6. swing — to play on
  7. cap — of ice
  8. cap — a lid
  9. bark — to shout
  10. firm — a company
  11. spell — letters
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. swing — music
  15. degree — temperature
  16. spell — a short time
  17. firm — steady
  18. cap — a hat
  19. key — the most important part
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. degree — an amount
  22. spell — magic
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. key — in music

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