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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. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  5. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  6. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  11. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  12. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. Did you ________________ the meat?
  17. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  24. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. board — a flat piece
  3. degree — from a university
  4. board — to get on
  5. snap — to snap out of it
  6. rule — to rule out
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. game — wild animals
  10. rule — a law
  11. season — in sport
  12. board — a committee
  13. degree — an amount
  14. snap — to speak sharply
  15. snap — to click
  16. season — to add flavour
  17. rule — government
  18. season — of the year
  19. bass — the instrument
  20. cell — in biology
  21. degree — temperature
  22. game — a match
  23. bass — the fish
  24. cell — a phone

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