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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 116 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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  6. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  7. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  8. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  9. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  18. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  22. That was ________________ to happen.
  23. I can't ________________ this cold.
  24. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. degree — from a university
  3. degree — temperature
  4. field — a subject
  5. bound — obliged
  6. pound — to hit hard
  7. pound — a weight
  8. stand — on your feet
  9. stock — a soup base
  10. ground — the earth
  11. pound — for dogs
  12. stock — goods
  13. ground — a position
  14. degree — an amount
  15. scale — for weighing
  16. stock — shares
  17. bound — tied together
  18. scale — size or range
  19. field — for sport
  20. ground — crushed
  21. stand — for spectators
  22. bound — certain
  23. stand — to bear
  24. scale — in music

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