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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. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  7. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  8. Did you ________________ the button?
  9. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  10. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  11. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  12. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  13. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  20. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  23. We're on a ________________ here.
  24. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. press — a publisher
  4. fine — a penalty
  5. degree — from a university
  6. roll — a cake
  7. craft — a handicraft
  8. press — to push
  9. toast — a drink to someone
  10. fine — all right
  11. hide — animal skin
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. fine — high quality
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. press — newspapers
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. toast — the most admired
  18. degree — temperature
  19. craft — boats
  20. roll — a list
  21. mine — for digging
  22. toast — bread
  23. roll — on a roll
  24. craft — a skill

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