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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. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  2. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  10. Did you ________________ the meat?
  11. What do you think of the new ________________?
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  15. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  16. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  17. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  18. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. net — for catching
  3. net — after costs
  4. season — of the year
  5. board — a committee
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. degree — temperature
  8. wind — moving air
  9. board — a flat piece
  10. season — to add flavour
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. season — in sport
  13. face — to confront
  14. bear — to put up with
  15. face — to point toward
  16. board — to get on
  17. bear — the animal
  18. bear — the animal
  19. degree — from a university
  20. net — in sport
  21. face — part of the head
  22. cabinet — a cupboard
  23. wind — moving air
  24. degree — an amount

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