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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.

Words on the sheet
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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: degree · firm · clip · mate · tear · pop

  1. You don't need to ________________ round.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  6. We're almost out of ________________.
  7. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  8. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  11. Have you found your soul ________________?
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  18. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — to visit
  2. clip — for paper
  3. degree — temperature
  4. degree — an amount
  5. mate — a friend
  6. pop — soda
  7. pop — music
  8. firm — a company
  9. clip — to cut
  10. mate — to breed
  11. mate — a partner
  12. degree — from a university
  13. clip — a video
  14. tear — from crying
  15. tear — to rip
  16. tear — from crying
  17. firm — steady
  18. firm — decided

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