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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. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  5. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  6. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  7. My mare is ________________ in color.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  24. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. rest — what's left
  3. chair — a leader
  4. rest — a break
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. bay — to keep at bay
  7. bay — a horse colour
  8. cell — in biology
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. cell — a phone
  11. perch — the fish
  12. sharp — clever
  13. degree — temperature
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. stock — shares
  16. degree — an amount
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. stock — a soup base
  19. degree — from a university
  20. stock — goods
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. bay — a part of the sea
  24. rest — what's left

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