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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. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  3. What do you think of the new ________________?
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. That was ________________ to happen.
  9. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  10. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  11. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  14. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  15. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  16. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  17. I'll be taking the ________________.
  18. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  19. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  20. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  21. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  22. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  23. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. bound — tied together
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. club — for golf
  5. tube — a container
  6. lash — an eyelash
  7. bear — the animal
  8. bound — certain
  9. lash — to lash out
  10. bear — to put up with
  11. bear — the animal
  12. degree — temperature
  13. squash — the vegetable
  14. squash — to crush
  15. cabinet — a cupboard
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. tube — the underground
  18. tube — in a tire
  19. bound — obliged
  20. club — for dancing
  21. squash — the sport
  22. lash — a whip stroke
  23. club — a group
  24. degree — an amount

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