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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. Have you met the new head ________________?
  2. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  7. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  8. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  16. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  17. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  23. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. season — in sport
  3. game — a match
  4. pass — to spend time
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. pass — a permit
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. kick — in football
  9. game — wild animals
  10. spring — a coil
  11. spring — the season
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. pass — to succeed
  14. degree — an amount
  15. coach — pulled by horses
  16. rest — what's left
  17. rest — what's left
  18. spring — of water
  19. kick — with a leg
  20. degree — from a university
  21. degree — temperature
  22. rest — a break
  23. kick — a thrill
  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