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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. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  8. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  9. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  10. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  11. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  12. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  13. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. fine — high quality
  3. tube — the underground
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. craft — boats
  6. degree — an amount
  7. rest — a break
  8. rest — what's left
  9. prune — to trim
  10. fine — all right
  11. bark — of a tree
  12. tube — a container
  13. drill — army training
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. fine — a penalty
  16. prune — to trim
  17. bark — to shout
  18. craft — a skill
  19. degree — temperature
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. drill — a practice
  22. rest — what's left
  23. drill — the tool
  24. craft — a handicraft

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