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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. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  2. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  7. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  17. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  18. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  19. Don't do anything ________________.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. The polar ice ________________ is melting.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. bass — the instrument
  3. degree — temperature
  4. degree — from a university
  5. spell — a short time
  6. rash — a series
  7. cap — a lid
  8. degree — an amount
  9. wind — moving air
  10. band — a ring
  11. spell — magic
  12. spell — letters
  13. club — a group
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. club — for golf
  17. bass — the fish
  18. cap — a hat
  19. rash — hasty
  20. wind — moving air
  21. bass — low music
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. band — a music group
  24. cap — of ice

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