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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. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  7. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  8. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  11. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  14. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. This piece is in a major ________________.
  17. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  18. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  19. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  20. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  24. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. cue — for pool
  3. chest — of your body
  4. degree — from a university
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. craft — a handicraft
  7. key — the most important part
  8. craft — boats
  9. chest — of your body
  10. key — for a lock
  11. bark — to shout
  12. degree — temperature
  13. cue — a hint
  14. cue — a signal
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. key — in music
  17. mark — to pay attention
  18. chest — a box
  19. mark — a grade
  20. mine — for digging
  21. degree — an amount
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. mark — a trace
  24. craft — a skill

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