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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. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. What do you think of the new ________________?
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  19. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. How do you ________________ your surname?
  24. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. can — a tin
  3. degree — temperature
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. squash — to crush
  6. foot — part of the body
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. foot — a measure
  9. squash — the sport
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. can — a tin
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. bark — to shout
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. shower — rain
  16. shower — to wash
  17. cabinet — a cupboard
  18. spell — magic
  19. can — to be able to
  20. degree — from a university
  21. foot — the bottom
  22. spell — a short time
  23. spell — letters
  24. cabinet — ministers

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