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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. Where did you ________________ them?
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  5. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  6. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. What do you think of the new ________________?
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  12. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  13. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  17. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  21. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — to rob
  2. land — ground
  3. spring — of water
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. deal — a big deal
  6. mark — a grade
  7. land — to come down
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. degree — an amount
  10. land — a country
  11. mug — a face
  12. deal — an agreement
  13. mark — a trace
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. spring — the season
  16. deal — to handle
  17. mug — a cup
  18. bark — of a tree
  19. spring — a coil
  20. mark — to pay attention
  21. cabinet — a cupboard
  22. degree — from a university
  23. degree — temperature
  24. bark — to shout

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