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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. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  7. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  8. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  9. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. Did you ________________ the meat?
  15. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  16. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  20. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  21. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  22. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. He keeps ________________ of his days.

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. degree — from a university
  4. degree — an amount
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. lie — to recline
  7. wave — with your hand
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. wake — before a funeral
  10. degree — temperature
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. wake — a trail
  13. land — ground
  14. season — to add flavour
  15. track — a path
  16. wave — a sudden rise
  17. land — a country
  18. season — of the year
  19. wake — to stop sleeping
  20. chair — a leader
  21. track — a song
  22. wave — of the sea
  23. land — to come down
  24. track — to keep track

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