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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. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  2. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  3. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  4. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  12. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  18. She's very handy with a ________________.
  19. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  22. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  23. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. toast — the most admired
  2. dip — a sauce
  3. mark — to pay attention
  4. toast — bread
  5. cap — a lid
  6. chair — a leader
  7. toast — a drink to someone
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. chair — to sit on
  10. saw — the tool
  11. cap — of ice
  12. row — a quarrel
  13. degree — temperature
  14. row — to paddle
  15. dip — to dunk
  16. dip — to sink
  17. cap — a hat
  18. saw — the tool
  19. chair — a professorship
  20. degree — from a university
  21. mark — a grade
  22. mark — a trace
  23. row — a line
  24. degree — an amount

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