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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. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  2. I've got to change the light ________________.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  8. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. Where did you ________________ them?
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  16. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  22. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  23. The light ________________ burned out.
  24. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a grade
  2. bulb — for light
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. net — for catching
  5. degree — an amount
  6. net — in sport
  7. mug — a face
  8. mark — a trace
  9. chair — a leader
  10. root — the cause
  11. degree — temperature
  12. mug — to rob
  13. degree — from a university
  14. clip — a video
  15. bulb — of a plant
  16. root — of a word
  17. net — after costs
  18. root — of a plant
  19. clip — to cut
  20. clip — for paper
  21. mug — a cup
  22. chair — to sit on
  23. bulb — for light
  24. mark — to pay attention

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