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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 124 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. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  2. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  3. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  4. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  5. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  10. Have you met the new head ________________?
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  19. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — pulled by horses
  2. jam — to spread on bread
  3. firm — a company
  4. jam — in traffic
  5. club — for dancing
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. degree — from a university
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. club — for golf
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. degree — temperature
  12. firm — decided
  13. club — a group
  14. firm — steady
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. jam — a tight spot
  17. game — a match
  18. branch — of a tree
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. branch — a division
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. degree — an amount
  24. game — wild animals

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