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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. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. Have you met the new head ________________?
  6. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  7. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  10. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. I'll be taking the ________________.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  15. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  16. You don't need to ________________ round.
  17. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  18. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  19. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  20. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  21. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  22. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  23. We're almost out of ________________.
  24. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. pound — for dogs
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. content — happy
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. object — an aim
  7. object — to protest
  8. degree — temperature
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. track — a song
  11. degree — from a university
  12. tube — the underground
  13. content — the amount
  14. track — a path
  15. object — a thing
  16. pop — to visit
  17. track — to keep track
  18. tube — a container
  19. coach — pulled by horses
  20. tube — in a tire
  21. pound — to hit hard
  22. pop — music
  23. pop — soda
  24. pound — a weight

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