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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. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  3. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  7. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  8. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  13. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. David sat on the ________________.
  18. Don't do anything ________________.
  19. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. hide — animal skin
  3. swing — music
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. safe — out of danger
  7. safe — a strongbox
  8. season — in sport
  9. degree — temperature
  10. board — a committee
  11. hand — in cards
  12. rash — a series
  13. board — to get on
  14. hand — help
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. degree — an amount
  17. swing — to play on
  18. rash — hasty
  19. season — of the year
  20. swing — in golf
  21. safe — out of danger
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. board — a flat piece
  24. rash — on the skin

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