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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. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  3. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  10. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  11. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  12. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  13. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  14. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  17. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  20. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  21. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  22. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  23. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  24. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. fine — all right
  3. fine — high quality
  4. march — the month
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. degree — an amount
  7. pass — to succeed
  8. march — the month
  9. object — an aim
  10. deal — a big deal
  11. dip — to sink
  12. chair — a professorship
  13. object — a thing
  14. object — to protest
  15. degree — temperature
  16. pass — to spend time
  17. dip — to dunk
  18. march — music
  19. fine — a penalty
  20. deal — to handle
  21. deal — an agreement
  22. pass — a permit
  23. chair — a leader
  24. dip — a sauce

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