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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. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  5. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  6. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  10. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  16. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  19. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  20. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. rest — what's left
  3. sharp — clever
  4. rest — a break
  5. rest — what's left
  6. leaves — of a tree
  7. cap — of ice
  8. ground — a position
  9. squash — to crush
  10. leaves — lets stay
  11. cap — a hat
  12. degree — an amount
  13. chair — a leader
  14. cap — a lid
  15. ground — the earth
  16. sharp — with an edge
  17. squash — the sport
  18. squash — the vegetable
  19. ground — crushed
  20. leaves — to go away
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. chair — a professorship
  24. degree — temperature

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