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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 116 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. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  2. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  3. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  10. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. David sat on the ________________.
  15. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  19. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  23. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the fish
  2. object — a thing
  3. object — to protest
  4. degree — temperature
  5. rule — a law
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. snap — to click
  8. spell — magic
  9. rule — government
  10. bark — to shout
  11. swing — music
  12. swing — in golf
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. swing — to play on
  15. spell — a short time
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. degree — from a university
  18. bass — low music
  19. rule — to rule out
  20. degree — an amount
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. bass — the instrument
  23. object — an aim
  24. spell — letters

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