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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 120 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. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  5. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  6. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  7. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  8. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  11. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  12. I'll be taking the ________________.
  13. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  14. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  15. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  16. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  19. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  20. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  21. Have you met the new head ________________?
  22. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  23. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. bark — to shout
  3. tube — a container
  4. pound — for dogs
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. pound — a weight
  7. craft — boats
  8. bark — of a tree
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. kick — a thrill
  11. craft — a handicraft
  12. tube — the underground
  13. kick — with a leg
  14. kick — in football
  15. coach — pulled by horses
  16. chip — to eat
  17. degree — temperature
  18. chip — for betting
  19. pound — to hit hard
  20. chip — in a computer
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. craft — a skill
  23. tube — in a tire
  24. degree — an amount

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