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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. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  10. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  13. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  14. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  15. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  22. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  23. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. cap — a lid
  4. jam — in traffic
  5. game — a match
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. ground — crushed
  8. ground — the earth
  9. jam — to spread on bread
  10. trunk — of a tree
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. deal — a big deal
  13. cap — of ice
  14. jam — a tight spot
  15. fine — high quality
  16. degree — an amount
  17. cap — a hat
  18. ground — a position
  19. fine — a penalty
  20. game — wild animals
  21. fine — all right
  22. deal — to handle
  23. deal — an agreement
  24. degree — temperature

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