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

Word bank: degree · present · deal · pass · jam · tear

  1. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  4. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  5. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  6. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  11. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  12. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  15. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  16. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  17. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  18. 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. tear — from crying
  2. tear — to rip
  3. deal — a big deal
  4. jam — to spread on bread
  5. deal — to handle
  6. present — a gift
  7. tear — from crying
  8. present — the time now
  9. degree — from a university
  10. jam — in traffic
  11. pass — a permit
  12. jam — a tight spot
  13. degree — temperature
  14. deal — an agreement
  15. present — there
  16. pass — to succeed
  17. pass — to spend time
  18. 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