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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. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  3. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  4. That was ________________ to happen.
  5. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  6. We're almost out of ________________.
  7. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  8. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  9. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  10. I can't ________________ this cold.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  16. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. You don't need to ________________ round.
  19. It's one o'clock ________________.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. stand — for spectators
  3. can — a tin
  4. bound — certain
  5. can — a tin
  6. pop — soda
  7. can — to be able to
  8. stand — on your feet
  9. sharp — clever
  10. stand — to bear
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. bound — obliged
  13. tear — from crying
  14. mine — for digging
  15. pop — music
  16. bound — tied together
  17. degree — from a university
  18. pop — to visit
  19. sharp — exactly
  20. degree — temperature
  21. tear — from crying
  22. tear — to rip
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. mine — belonging to me

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