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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: club · bat · leaves · mine · dip · jam · cue · degree

  1. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  2. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  5. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  6. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  16. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  17. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  18. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  19. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  20. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  21. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  22. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  23. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  24. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. jam — to spread on bread
  2. cue — for pool
  3. degree — an amount
  4. jam — a tight spot
  5. club — for golf
  6. mine — belonging to me
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. bat — the animal
  9. dip — a sauce
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. mine — for digging
  13. cue — a hint
  14. degree — temperature
  15. jam — in traffic
  16. leaves — to go away
  17. club — for dancing
  18. dip — to dunk
  19. club — a group
  20. leaves — lets stay
  21. leaves — of a tree
  22. cue — a signal
  23. dip — to sink
  24. degree — from a university

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