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

  1. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. David sat on the ________________.
  5. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  6. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  7. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  8. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  9. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  14. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  15. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  16. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. degree — from a university
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. swing — to play on
  5. pitch — completely
  6. pitch — a sales talk
  7. kick — a thrill
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. swing — in golf
  10. degree — an amount
  11. pitch — a sports field
  12. degree — temperature
  13. kick — in football
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. kick — with a leg
  16. swing — music
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. stick — to attach or keep to

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