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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. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  3. The tickets are free of ________________.
  4. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. The ________________ went through the wall.
  10. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  13. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  14. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. Did you ________________ the button?
  17. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  23. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. nail — on a finger
  3. charge — a price
  4. charge — in control
  5. degree — from a university
  6. press — newspapers
  7. degree — temperature
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. wave — a sudden rise
  11. race — the arms race
  12. chair — to sit on
  13. wave — of the sea
  14. charge — electricity
  15. race — humankind
  16. press — to push
  17. press — a publisher
  18. land — a country
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. degree — an amount
  21. land — ground
  22. wave — with your hand
  23. race — a contest
  24. land — to come down

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