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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. We're almost out of ________________.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. The King held a masked ________________.
  4. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  7. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. You don't need to ________________ round.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  12. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  13. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  14. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  19. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  22. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — soda
  2. degree — an amount
  3. ball — a dance
  4. fine — high quality
  5. ground — the earth
  6. ball — a round shape
  7. pop — music
  8. degree — temperature
  9. pop — to visit
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. bear — the animal
  12. bear — to put up with
  13. pitch — a sports field
  14. ball — a great time
  15. mine — for digging
  16. pitch — a sales talk
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. pitch — completely
  19. ground — crushed
  20. ground — a position
  21. bear — the animal
  22. fine — all right
  23. degree — from a university
  24. fine — a penalty

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