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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. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  8. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  9. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  10. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  11. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. He works in a ________________ mill.
  17. She's very handy with a ________________.
  18. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  21. Have you met the new head ________________?
  22. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  23. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  24. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. race — humankind
  3. field — for sport
  4. degree — an amount
  5. fall — the season
  6. field — a subject
  7. rock — music
  8. coach — pulled by horses
  9. rock — a stone
  10. fall — to drop
  11. saw — past of 'see'
  12. race — the arms race
  13. degree — from a university
  14. race — a contest
  15. field — farmland
  16. saw — the tool
  17. saw — the tool
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. fall — to drop
  20. chair — to sit on
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. rock — to move gently
  23. chair — a leader
  24. chair — a professorship

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