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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. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  2. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  12. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. I can't ________________ this cold.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. can — a tin
  3. chair — a leader
  4. chair — to sit on
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. stand — on your feet
  7. clip — to cut
  8. clip — a video
  9. wave — with your hand
  10. season — in sport
  11. wave — a sudden rise
  12. can — to be able to
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. degree — an amount
  16. wave — of the sea
  17. degree — from a university
  18. season — of the year
  19. degree — temperature
  20. stand — for spectators
  21. clip — for paper
  22. stand — to bear
  23. bat — the animal
  24. season — to add flavour

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