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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. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  2. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. That must've been a ________________.
  11. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  17. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  23. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  24. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — a permit
  2. craft — boats
  3. bark — to shout
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. cell — in biology
  6. shower — to wash
  7. craft — a handicraft
  8. degree — an amount
  9. scale — size or range
  10. rush — a thrill
  11. scale — for weighing
  12. degree — temperature
  13. shower — rain
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. cell — a phone
  16. pass — to succeed
  17. pass — to spend time
  18. bark — a dog's sound
  19. degree — from a university
  20. craft — a skill
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. rush — hurry
  23. rush — to hurry
  24. scale — in music

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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