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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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  12. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  15. My mare is ________________ in color.
  16. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  20. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  24. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. bay — to keep at bay
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. cold — an illness
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. pound — to hit hard
  10. degree — temperature
  11. bay — a part of the sea
  12. fine — all right
  13. cold — not warm
  14. fine — high quality
  15. bay — a horse colour
  16. pound — a weight
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. degree — from a university
  19. pound — for dogs
  20. fine — a penalty
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. bark — to shout
  23. chair — to sit on
  24. chair — a leader

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