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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. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  7. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  15. Have you met the new head ________________?
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  18. What do you think of the new ________________?
  19. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. degree — temperature
  4. cabinet — a cupboard
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. present — there
  7. present — a gift
  8. clip — a video
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. degree — from a university
  11. clip — for paper
  12. degree — an amount
  13. clip — to cut
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. rash — hasty
  17. coach — pulled by horses
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. chair — a leader
  20. rash — a series
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. present — the time now
  24. chair — to sit on

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