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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 120 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. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  8. Have you met the new head ________________?
  9. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  18. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  19. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  20. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  21. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  22. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. degree — temperature
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. stock — shares
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. chair — a leader
  7. can — to be able to
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. stock — goods
  10. bat — the animal
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. can — a tin
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. degree — an amount
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. hide — animal skin
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. firm — decided
  20. stock — a soup base
  21. firm — steady
  22. firm — a company
  23. degree — from a university
  24. can — a tin

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