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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. What do you think of the new ________________?
  2. We're on a ________________ here.
  3. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  7. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  15. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  18. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  21. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  22. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  23. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  24. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. roll — on a roll
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. degree — from a university
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. fork — to eat with
  7. roll — a list
  8. fork — in a road
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. cabinet — a cupboard
  11. game — wild animals
  12. chair — to sit on
  13. degree — an amount
  14. branch — a division
  15. roll — a cake
  16. game — a match
  17. cap — of ice
  18. chair — a leader
  19. degree — temperature
  20. chair — a professorship
  21. cap — a lid
  22. cap — a hat
  23. branch — of a bank
  24. fork — a garden tool

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