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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. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  11. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. Did you ________________ the meat?
  15. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  16. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  17. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  20. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  21. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  24. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. safe — a strongbox
  3. chair — a leader
  4. degree — temperature
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. band — a ring
  9. degree — an amount
  10. perch — the fish
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. season — in sport
  13. degree — from a university
  14. season — to add flavour
  15. rule — government
  16. safe — out of danger
  17. chair — a professorship
  18. season — of the year
  19. band — a music group
  20. band — a rubber band
  21. rule — a law
  22. rash — a series
  23. safe — out of danger
  24. rule — to rule out

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