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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. That was a fun ________________.
  2. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  3. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  6. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  7. The ________________ market has crashed.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  15. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  16. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  17. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. That was ________________ to happen.
  22. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. We are ________________ to obey laws.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. bound — tied together
  3. stock — a soup base
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. mark — a trace
  6. root — of a word
  7. stock — shares
  8. game — wild animals
  9. swing — to play on
  10. degree — temperature
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. root — of a plant
  13. degree — from a university
  14. stock — goods
  15. root — the cause
  16. swing — music
  17. mark — a grade
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. swing — in golf
  21. bound — certain
  22. mark — to pay attention
  23. degree — an amount
  24. bound — obliged

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