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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 assure you, everything's ________________.
  2. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  3. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  4. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  5. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  13. We're almost out of ________________.
  14. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  17. You don't need to ________________ round.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  22. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. Have you settled on a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. fine — all right
  2. staff — a stick
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. fine — a penalty
  5. staff — employees
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. jam — in traffic
  8. degree — temperature
  9. jam — to spread on bread
  10. game — a match
  11. degree — from a university
  12. jam — a tight spot
  13. pop — soda
  14. staff — employees
  15. bark — to shout
  16. fine — high quality
  17. pop — to visit
  18. degree — an amount
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. date — the fruit
  22. pop — music
  23. game — wild animals
  24. date — on the calendar

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