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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. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  12. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  13. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  17. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  18. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  19. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  20. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  21. What do you think of the new ________________?
  22. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  23. Where did you ________________ them?
  24. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in biology
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. cell — a phone
  4. content — happy
  5. degree — an amount
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. bark — to shout
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. lie — to recline
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. mug — a face
  14. degree — temperature
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. content — the amount
  17. bark — a dog's sound
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. mug — a cup
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. cabinet — a cupboard
  23. mug — to rob
  24. degree — from a university

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