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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. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  2. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  3. The King held a masked ________________.
  4. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  5. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. The ________________ market has crashed.
  8. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  9. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  10. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  11. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  12. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  13. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  14. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  19. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  20. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. I can't ________________ this cold.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. stock — a soup base
  3. ball — a dance
  4. stand — on your feet
  5. stand — for spectators
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. stock — shares
  8. rule — a law
  9. rule — to rule out
  10. jam — a tight spot
  11. ball — a great time
  12. ball — a round shape
  13. spell — magic
  14. spell — a short time
  15. degree — temperature
  16. stock — goods
  17. spell — letters
  18. jam — to spread on bread
  19. jam — in traffic
  20. rule — government
  21. degree — an amount
  22. stand — to bear
  23. cell — in biology
  24. cell — a phone

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