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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. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. My mare is ________________ in color.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  11. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  12. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  13. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  14. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  15. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  16. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  17. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  18. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  23. The tickets are free of ________________.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. degree — temperature
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. bay — a horse colour
  7. degree — from a university
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. clip — a video
  10. charge — electricity
  11. cue — a hint
  12. bark — to shout
  13. bay — a part of the sea
  14. bay — to keep at bay
  15. cue — a signal
  16. pit — in a race
  17. pit — a fruit stone
  18. charge — in control
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. pit — a hole
  21. clip — to cut
  22. cue — for pool
  23. charge — a price
  24. clip — for paper

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