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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. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  3. The tickets are free of ________________.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  7. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  8. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  9. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  10. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  11. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. Where did you ________________ them?
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  23. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  24. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. calf — of the leg
  3. charge — a price
  4. file — a line of people
  5. fall — to drop
  6. mug — a cup
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. chair — a leader
  9. fall — to drop
  10. charge — in control
  11. fall — the season
  12. file — a document
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. bark — to shout
  16. degree — temperature
  17. file — a tool
  18. mug — a face
  19. degree — an amount
  20. mug — to rob
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. charge — electricity
  24. bark — a dog's sound

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