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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. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  5. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  13. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  17. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  18. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  19. That was ________________ to happen.
  20. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  21. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  22. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  23. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  24. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. kick — in football
  3. mine — for digging
  4. bound — tied together
  5. can — a tin
  6. track — to keep track
  7. band — a music group
  8. fine — a penalty
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. band — a ring
  11. degree — from a university
  12. kick — with a leg
  13. can — a tin
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. degree — temperature
  16. fine — all right
  17. track — a song
  18. bound — obliged
  19. bound — certain
  20. band — a rubber band
  21. kick — a thrill
  22. can — to be able to
  23. track — a path
  24. fine — high quality

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