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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. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  2. You don't need to ________________ round.
  3. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. I've got to change the light ________________.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  8. The light ________________ burned out.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  11. I'll be taking the ________________.
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  16. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  17. The ________________ market has crashed.
  18. We're almost out of ________________.
  19. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  22. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  23. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  24. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — all right
  2. pop — to visit
  3. pop — music
  4. degree — temperature
  5. bulb — for light
  6. degree — an amount
  7. fine — high quality
  8. bulb — for light
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. bowl — to roll
  11. tube — the underground
  12. degree — from a university
  13. fine — a penalty
  14. wound — an injury
  15. stock — goods
  16. bowl — a dish
  17. stock — shares
  18. pop — soda
  19. stock — a soup base
  20. wound — an injury
  21. bulb — of a plant
  22. tube — a container
  23. bowl — a football final
  24. tube — in a tire

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