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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 my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. Have you settled on a ________________?
  7. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  13. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  21. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  24. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. bore — to tire
  3. spring — of water
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. chair — a leader
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. toast — a drink to someone
  8. cell — a phone
  9. cell — in biology
  10. bore — to drill
  11. spring — a coil
  12. board — a flat piece
  13. board — to get on
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. toast — bread
  16. degree — an amount
  17. board — a committee
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. spring — the season
  20. bore — gave birth
  21. toast — the most admired
  22. degree — from a university
  23. chair — to sit on
  24. date — the fruit

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