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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. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  4. What do you think of the new ________________?
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  7. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  10. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  11. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  12. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  13. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  14. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  17. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  18. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  21. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  22. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  23. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  24. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?

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

Answer key

  1. toast — a drink to someone
  2. degree — from a university
  3. toast — the most admired
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. fall — to drop
  6. wave — of the sea
  7. rule — a law
  8. degree — temperature
  9. wave — a sudden rise
  10. pitch — a sales talk
  11. pitch — a sports field
  12. pitch — completely
  13. present — there
  14. fall — the season
  15. degree — an amount
  16. toast — bread
  17. present — the time now
  18. cabinet — a cupboard
  19. fall — to drop
  20. wave — with your hand
  21. rule — government
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. rule — to rule out
  24. present — a gift

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