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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. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  3. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  4. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  11. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  17. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  24. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. mark — to pay attention
  3. fall — to drop
  4. wake — to stop sleeping
  5. degree — from a university
  6. fall — the season
  7. staff — employees
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. pass — to spend time
  11. staff — a stick
  12. degree — an amount
  13. staff — employees
  14. march — music
  15. degree — temperature
  16. pass — a permit
  17. fall — to drop
  18. wake — a trail
  19. pass — to succeed
  20. march — the month
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. march — the month
  23. mark — a grade
  24. mark — a trace

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