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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 120 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. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  2. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  6. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  7. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  11. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  12. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  13. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  14. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  15. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  23. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  24. The tickets are free of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. degree — an amount
  4. club — for golf
  5. scale — size or range
  6. leaves — of a tree
  7. leaves — to go away
  8. cell — in biology
  9. degree — from a university
  10. charge — electricity
  11. dip — to dunk
  12. scale — for weighing
  13. leaves — lets stay
  14. scale — in music
  15. dip — a sauce
  16. wind — moving air
  17. degree — temperature
  18. charge — in control
  19. wind — moving air
  20. cell — a phone
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. club — a group
  23. dip — to sink
  24. charge — a price

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