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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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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. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  4. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. I can't ________________ this cold.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  9. Did you ________________ the meat?
  10. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  11. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  14. The King held a masked ________________.
  15. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  20. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  21. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. degree — from a university
  3. bank — for money
  4. bank — of a river
  5. season — of the year
  6. stand — to bear
  7. degree — temperature
  8. bank — for money
  9. season — to add flavour
  10. stand — on your feet
  11. season — in sport
  12. cold — an illness
  13. stand — for spectators
  14. ball — a dance
  15. ball — a round shape
  16. prune — to trim
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. prune — to trim
  20. chair — a leader
  21. prune — the fruit
  22. cold — not warm
  23. degree — an amount
  24. chair — a professorship

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