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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. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. Have you settled on a ________________?
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. Have you met the new head ________________?
  17. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  18. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  19. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  22. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  23. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  24. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — pulled by horses
  2. chair — a leader
  3. degree — an amount
  4. land — a country
  5. staff — employees
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. land — ground
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. staff — a stick
  11. degree — temperature
  12. snap — to click
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. board — to get on
  15. land — to come down
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. staff — employees
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. degree — from a university
  21. board — a flat piece
  22. board — a committee
  23. date — the fruit
  24. snap — to snap out of it

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