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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 120 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. What do you think of the new ________________?
  3. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  6. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  7. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. It's one o'clock ________________.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. That was ________________ to happen.
  13. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  17. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  18. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  21. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. fine — all right
  4. field — a subject
  5. sharp — clever
  6. cabinet — a cupboard
  7. pound — a weight
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. sharp — exactly
  10. degree — an amount
  11. bound — obliged
  12. bound — certain
  13. pound — for dogs
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. field — for sport
  16. fine — a penalty
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. pound — to hit hard
  19. degree — temperature
  20. chair — a leader
  21. fine — high quality
  22. field — farmland
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. bound — tied together

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