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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. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  7. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  8. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  9. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  12. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  19. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  22. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. bass — the instrument
  3. cold — an illness
  4. cue — a hint
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. lean — thin
  7. cue — for pool
  8. bear — the animal
  9. board — a committee
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. lean — to bend
  12. cue — a signal
  13. season — of the year
  14. season — in sport
  15. degree — an amount
  16. cold — not warm
  17. bear — the animal
  18. bass — low music
  19. board — a flat piece
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. bear — to put up with
  22. board — to get on
  23. degree — temperature
  24. bass — the fish

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