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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. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  3. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  13. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  16. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  17. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  18. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  21. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  24. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. bass — the instrument
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. degree — from a university
  5. bark — of a tree
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. bark — to shout
  9. chair — to sit on
  10. degree — temperature
  11. bat — the animal
  12. present — the time now
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. bank — of a river
  16. present — there
  17. bass — the fish
  18. patient — calm and waiting
  19. degree — an amount
  20. bank — for money
  21. bank — for money
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. bass — low music
  24. present — a gift

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