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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. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  9. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. We're on a ________________ here.
  12. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  13. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  14. The ________________ took off on time.
  15. Have you settled on a ________________?
  16. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  17. Did you ________________ the meat?
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  21. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. roll — a list
  3. degree — an amount
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. degree — temperature
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. net — for catching
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. plane — a tool
  10. season — in sport
  11. roll — on a roll
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. racket — a loud noise
  14. plane — an aircraft
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. plane — in geometry
  17. season — to add flavour
  18. net — after costs
  19. net — in sport
  20. date — the fruit
  21. roll — a cake
  22. degree — from a university
  23. chair — to sit on
  24. season — of the year

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