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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. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. We're on a ________________ here.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  9. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  10. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  11. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  14. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  15. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  16. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  17. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  18. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  19. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  22. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. degree — temperature
  3. roll — a cake
  4. degree — an amount
  5. roll — on a roll
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. swing — to play on
  8. cue — a signal
  9. cue — a hint
  10. craft — a handicraft
  11. craft — a skill
  12. shower — to wash
  13. bear — the animal
  14. roll — a list
  15. craft — boats
  16. jam — to spread on bread
  17. jam — in traffic
  18. cue — for pool
  19. swing — music
  20. swing — in golf
  21. jam — a tight spot
  22. bear — to put up with
  23. shower — rain
  24. bear — the animal

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