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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. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  2. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  6. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  7. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  8. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  9. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  10. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  11. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  14. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  17. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  18. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  19. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  20. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  23. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  24. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — a law
  2. can — a tin
  3. degree — an amount
  4. stock — shares
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. dip — to sink
  7. snap — to click
  8. rule — government
  9. prune — to trim
  10. can — a tin
  11. prune — to trim
  12. degree — from a university
  13. lie — to recline
  14. snap — to speak sharply
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. dip — a sauce
  17. rule — to rule out
  18. stock — goods
  19. stock — a soup base
  20. prune — the fruit
  21. degree — temperature
  22. can — to be able to
  23. dip — to dunk
  24. lie — an untruth

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