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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: suit · jam · bark · tear · rush · lie · rash · degree

  1. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  4. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  5. That must've been a ________________.
  6. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  9. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  10. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  11. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  12. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  15. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  16. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  17. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  18. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. Don't do anything ________________.
  21. When will it ________________ you to start?
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. degree — from a university
  3. jam — a tight spot
  4. suit — clothes
  5. rush — a thrill
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. lie — to recline
  9. rush — hurry
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. bark — a dog's sound
  12. jam — to spread on bread
  13. degree — temperature
  14. rash — a series
  15. rush — to hurry
  16. bark — to shout
  17. suit — in cards
  18. jam — in traffic
  19. tear — from crying
  20. rash — hasty
  21. suit — to fit
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. tear — to rip
  24. tear — from crying

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