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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. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  2. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  3. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  11. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  12. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  20. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  21. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  22. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. content — videos and posts
  2. squash — to crush
  3. cue — a signal
  4. bark — to shout
  5. degree — temperature
  6. content — the amount
  7. degree — from a university
  8. degree — an amount
  9. game — a match
  10. squash — the sport
  11. present — there
  12. present — a gift
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. net — in sport
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. net — for catching
  18. present — the time now
  19. content — happy
  20. cue — a hint
  21. squash — the vegetable
  22. cue — for pool
  23. game — wild animals
  24. net — after costs

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