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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. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  5. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  9. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  10. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  13. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  14. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. I can't ________________ this cold.
  17. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  18. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  19. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  22. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. degree — temperature
  3. cold — an illness
  4. club — a group
  5. stand — for spectators
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. cold — not warm
  8. staff — employees
  9. firm — steady
  10. stand — on your feet
  11. branch — a division
  12. club — for golf
  13. staff — employees
  14. branch — of a tree
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. stand — to bear
  17. firm — decided
  18. staff — a stick
  19. firm — a company
  20. degree — from a university
  21. snap — to speak sharply
  22. snap — to click
  23. degree — an amount
  24. branch — of a bank

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