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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. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  5. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  8. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  11. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  12. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  13. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  14. Did you ________________ the meat?
  15. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  16. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  19. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  20. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  21. How do you ________________ your surname?
  22. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — magic
  2. degree — from a university
  3. degree — an amount
  4. craft — a handicraft
  5. bank — of a river
  6. race — the arms race
  7. craft — a skill
  8. vault — in gymnastics
  9. degree — temperature
  10. season — of the year
  11. bark — of a tree
  12. bark — to shout
  13. bark — a dog's sound
  14. season — to add flavour
  15. craft — boats
  16. vault — a safe
  17. spell — a short time
  18. bank — for money
  19. vault — an arched ceiling
  20. season — in sport
  21. spell — letters
  22. race — a contest
  23. race — humankind
  24. bank — for money

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