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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 120 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: bark · degree · firm · game · foot · rock · fine · wind

  1. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  4. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  5. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  12. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  13. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  14. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  23. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  24. 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. firm — a company
  2. game — wild animals
  3. fine — high quality
  4. fine — all right
  5. rock — to move gently
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. firm — steady
  9. degree — from a university
  10. wind — moving air
  11. rock — music
  12. firm — decided
  13. bark — a dog's sound
  14. foot — a measure
  15. wind — moving air
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. rock — a stone
  18. degree — temperature
  19. fine — a penalty
  20. game — a match
  21. bark — to shout
  22. foot — part of the body
  23. foot — the bottom
  24. 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