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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 116 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. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  6. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  9. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  10. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  15. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  18. The King held a masked ________________.
  19. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  20. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  21. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  22. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. club — for golf
  3. club — for dancing
  4. wind — moving air
  5. staff — employees
  6. ball — a round shape
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. club — a group
  9. ball — a great time
  10. rest — a break
  11. degree — temperature
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. degree — from a university
  14. rest — what's left
  15. rest — what's left
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. mark — a grade
  18. ball — a dance
  19. staff — employees
  20. mark — a trace
  21. mark — to pay attention
  22. staff — a stick
  23. wind — moving air
  24. pitcher — a jug

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