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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. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  4. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  5. How do you ________________ your surname?
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  8. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  13. That was ________________ to happen.
  14. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  15. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  19. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — decided
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. firm — steady
  4. bound — tied together
  5. spell — letters
  6. mate — a partner
  7. bound — obliged
  8. mate — a friend
  9. spell — magic
  10. degree — temperature
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. spell — a short time
  13. bound — certain
  14. content — videos and posts
  15. firm — a company
  16. degree — from a university
  17. content — the amount
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. mate — to breed
  20. degree — an amount
  21. content — happy
  22. hand — help
  23. racket — a loud noise
  24. hand — in cards

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