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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. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. You don't need to ________________ round.
  3. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  6. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  9. We're almost out of ________________.
  10. The light ________________ burned out.
  11. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. I've got to change the light ________________.
  14. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  19. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  20. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  21. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. pop — to visit
  3. pop — music
  4. degree — temperature
  5. foot — a measure
  6. racket — a loud noise
  7. bear — the animal
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. pop — soda
  10. bulb — for light
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. bulb — for light
  14. foot — the bottom
  15. kid — to tease
  16. bear — the animal
  17. degree — an amount
  18. foot — part of the body
  19. net — after costs
  20. kid — child
  21. bear — to put up with
  22. net — in sport
  23. net — for catching
  24. bulb — of a plant

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