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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. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  6. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  7. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  8. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  9. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  10. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  11. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  12. She's very handy with a ________________.
  13. Have you met the new head ________________?
  14. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  19. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  20. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  23. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  24. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. degree — temperature
  3. squash — to crush
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. craft — boats
  6. scale — for weighing
  7. saw — past of 'see'
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. craft — a handicraft
  10. craft — a skill
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. saw — the tool
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. coach — pulled by horses
  15. scale — in music
  16. scale — size or range
  17. saw — the tool
  18. squash — the sport
  19. chair — a leader
  20. racket — a loud noise
  21. degree — an amount
  22. squash — the vegetable
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. chair — to sit on

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