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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. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  8. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  9. That must've been a ________________.
  10. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  13. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  18. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  19. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  20. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  23. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  24. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to snap out of it
  2. degree — from a university
  3. degree — an amount
  4. rush — hurry
  5. pound — a weight
  6. degree — temperature
  7. snap — to click
  8. present — the time now
  9. rush — a thrill
  10. present — a gift
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. pound — for dogs
  13. trunk — of an elephant
  14. field — farmland
  15. rush — to hurry
  16. field — for sport
  17. fine — a penalty
  18. present — there
  19. fine — all right
  20. trunk — of a tree
  21. field — a subject
  22. pound — to hit hard
  23. fine — high quality
  24. snap — to speak sharply

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