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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. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  5. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  6. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. The King held a masked ________________.
  9. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  12. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  15. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — a penalty
  2. degree — an amount
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. rest — a break
  5. ball — a round shape
  6. ball — a great time
  7. row — a line
  8. ball — a dance
  9. bowl — a dish
  10. chair — a leader
  11. rest — what's left
  12. chair — a professorship
  13. mine — for digging
  14. rest — what's left
  15. fine — high quality
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. degree — from a university
  18. fine — all right
  19. degree — temperature
  20. bowl — a football final
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. bowl — to roll
  23. row — to paddle
  24. chair — to sit on

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