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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. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. We're on a ________________ here.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  7. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  8. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  9. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  10. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  13. Have you settled on a ________________?
  14. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  15. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  19. Did you ________________ the meat?
  20. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. Don't do anything ________________.
  24. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. content — videos and posts
  2. degree — temperature
  3. roll — on a roll
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. wind — moving air
  6. rest — what's left
  7. rest — what's left
  8. rash — on the skin
  9. season — of the year
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. content — happy
  12. roll — a list
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. content — the amount
  15. rest — a break
  16. season — in sport
  17. wind — moving air
  18. roll — a cake
  19. season — to add flavour
  20. date — the fruit
  21. degree — an amount
  22. degree — from a university
  23. rash — hasty
  24. rash — a series

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