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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. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  2. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  5. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  6. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  11. The light ________________ burned out.
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. I've got to change the light ________________.
  16. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  17. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  20. The ________________ market has crashed.
  21. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  22. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  23. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  24. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — of ice
  2. bass — the fish
  3. degree — from a university
  4. lash — an eyelash
  5. bulb — of a plant
  6. cap — a lid
  7. field — for sport
  8. field — a subject
  9. degree — an amount
  10. bass — low music
  11. bulb — for light
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. stock — goods
  14. degree — temperature
  15. bulb — for light
  16. board — a flat piece
  17. cap — a hat
  18. field — farmland
  19. board — to get on
  20. stock — shares
  21. board — a committee
  22. lash — to lash out
  23. bass — the instrument
  24. lash — a whip stroke

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