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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. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  3. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  19. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  22. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  23. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  24. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. can — a tin
  3. toast — bread
  4. press — a publisher
  5. toast — the most admired
  6. hand — in cards
  7. can — to be able to
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. press — newspapers
  10. degree — temperature
  11. chest — of your body
  12. bank — for money
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. hand — help
  15. degree — from a university
  16. bank — of a river
  17. chest — a box
  18. chair — a leader
  19. bank — for money
  20. chest — of your body
  21. toast — a drink to someone
  22. chair — to sit on
  23. can — a tin
  24. press — to push

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