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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. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  6. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  13. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  14. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. What do you think of the new ________________?
  17. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. I have a corn on my right ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. chair — a leader
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. cell — in biology
  5. foot — a measure
  6. patient — calm and waiting
  7. degree — an amount
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. swing — music
  10. cell — a phone
  11. swing — to play on
  12. swing — in golf
  13. foot — the bottom
  14. cabinet — a cupboard
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. chair — a professorship
  18. degree — temperature
  19. hand — help
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. degree — from a university
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. hand — in cards
  24. foot — part of the body

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