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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. Where did you ________________ them?
  2. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. That was ________________ to happen.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  13. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  17. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  18. The tickets are free of ________________.
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  21. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  24. Where can I ________________ my mobile?

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

Answer key

  1. mug — to rob
  2. bark — to shout
  3. band — a music group
  4. bound — tied together
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. bound — certain
  7. degree — an amount
  8. degree — from a university
  9. bowl — a football final
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. capital — a city
  12. bowl — a dish
  13. mug — a face
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. degree — temperature
  16. bound — obliged
  17. charge — in control
  18. charge — a price
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. band — a ring
  21. mug — a cup
  22. capital — money
  23. bowl — to roll
  24. charge — electricity

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