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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. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  8. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  9. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  10. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. He is an ace ________________.
  18. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  19. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  20. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  24. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — to pay attention
  2. degree — an amount
  3. rest — a break
  4. track — to keep track
  5. mine — for digging
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. board — a committee
  8. mark — a grade
  9. board — a flat piece
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. degree — from a university
  12. track — a path
  13. degree — temperature
  14. fan — to cool the air
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. pitcher — in baseball
  18. rest — what's left
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. board — to get on
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. rest — what's left
  23. track — a song
  24. mark — a trace

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