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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. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. The tickets are free of ________________.
  10. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  11. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  14. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  21. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. stock — goods
  3. bear — the animal
  4. spring — of water
  5. net — in sport
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. stock — shares
  9. charge — a price
  10. bark — to shout
  11. net — after costs
  12. degree — from a university
  13. bear — to put up with
  14. charge — in control
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. bear — the animal
  17. spring — the season
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. degree — temperature
  20. ruler — a monarch
  21. charge — electricity
  22. spring — a coil
  23. net — for catching
  24. ruler — for measuring

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