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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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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: jam · mine · content · date · degree · bore · leaves · ground

  1. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  12. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  15. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  16. Have you settled on a ________________?
  17. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  18. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  19. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  20. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  21. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  22. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. The train ________________ at six o'clock.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — of a tree
  2. degree — temperature
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. content — happy
  5. degree — an amount
  6. jam — in traffic
  7. mine — for digging
  8. date — the fruit
  9. content — the amount
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. bore — gave birth
  12. jam — a tight spot
  13. ground — a position
  14. ground — the earth
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. bore — to drill
  18. jam — to spread on bread
  19. ground — crushed
  20. mine — belonging to me
  21. leaves — lets stay
  22. bore — to tire
  23. degree — from a university
  24. leaves — to go away

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