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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 120 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 trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  6. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  7. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  14. The ________________ market has crashed.
  15. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  16. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  17. I can't ________________ this cold.
  18. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  19. When was this ________________ built?
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. Did you ________________ the meat?
  23. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — side of the head
  2. degree — an amount
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. chair — a leader
  5. foot — the bottom
  6. season — of the year
  7. foot — a measure
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. degree — from a university
  10. foot — part of the body
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. stock — goods
  13. stand — for spectators
  14. stock — shares
  15. season — in sport
  16. stand — on your feet
  17. stand — to bear
  18. chair — to sit on
  19. temple — a place of worship
  20. band — a music group
  21. degree — temperature
  22. season — to add flavour
  23. temple — a place of worship
  24. band — a ring

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