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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. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  3. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  9. Did you ________________ the meat?
  10. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  11. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  12. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  13. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  18. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  19. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  20. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  21. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  22. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  23. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  24. He's quite ________________, isn't he?

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. chair — to sit on
  3. snap — to speak sharply
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. degree — from a university
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. foot — the bottom
  9. season — to add flavour
  10. current — electric
  11. foot — part of the body
  12. chair — a leader
  13. rock — a stone
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. season — in sport
  16. degree — temperature
  17. foot — a measure
  18. current — happening now
  19. current — of water
  20. snap — to click
  21. season — of the year
  22. rock — to move gently
  23. rock — music
  24. sharp — clever

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