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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. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  3. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  4. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  23. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. current — happening now
  3. calf — of the leg
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. degree — temperature
  6. degree — from a university
  7. cell — in biology
  8. bark — to shout
  9. season — in sport
  10. chair — a leader
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. track — a song
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. current — of water
  18. cell — a phone
  19. current — electric
  20. season — of the year
  21. degree — an amount
  22. track — a path
  23. track — to keep track
  24. season — to add flavour

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