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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 116 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. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  11. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  12. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  13. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  14. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  17. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  18. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  19. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  20. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  21. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  22. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. last — finally
  3. degree — temperature
  4. degree — from a university
  5. snap — to click
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. last — to go on
  8. degree — an amount
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. cue — for pool
  11. bore — gave birth
  12. squash — the sport
  13. leaves — to go away
  14. bore — to tire
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. chair — a leader
  17. leaves — lets stay
  18. leaves — of a tree
  19. bore — to drill
  20. cue — a hint
  21. squash — to crush
  22. cue — a signal
  23. last — final
  24. squash — the vegetable

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