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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 flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  9. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  10. You don't need to ________________ round.
  11. I can't ________________ this cold.
  12. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  13. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  14. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  15. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  16. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  20. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  21. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  22. We're almost out of ________________.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. spring — the season
  3. clip — a video
  4. spring — of water
  5. pop — music
  6. spring — a coil
  7. degree — temperature
  8. bowl — a dish
  9. bowl — a football final
  10. pop — to visit
  11. stand — to bear
  12. stand — for spectators
  13. board — a flat piece
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. bowl — to roll
  16. mouse — for a computer
  17. clip — for paper
  18. degree — an amount
  19. board — a committee
  20. stand — on your feet
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. pop — soda
  23. clip — to cut
  24. board — to get on

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