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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. I've got to change the light ________________.
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. The light ________________ burned out.
  8. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  9. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  10. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  11. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  12. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  13. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  17. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  18. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  19. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  23. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  24. Tom got himself in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. bulb — for light
  3. bark — to shout
  4. pass — to spend time
  5. degree — from a university
  6. degree — temperature
  7. bulb — for light
  8. jam — in traffic
  9. pass — a permit
  10. bulb — of a plant
  11. wave — with your hand
  12. bark — of a tree
  13. jam — to spread on bread
  14. clip — to cut
  15. clip — a video
  16. pit — a fruit stone
  17. pit — in a race
  18. pass — to succeed
  19. wave — of the sea
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. clip — for paper
  22. wave — a sudden rise
  23. pit — a hole
  24. jam — a tight spot

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