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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. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  4. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  5. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  6. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  7. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  8. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  9. The light ________________ burned out.
  10. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  11. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  12. Where did you ________________ them?
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  21. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  22. I've got to change the light ________________.
  23. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  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. degree — from a university
  2. clip — for paper
  3. leaves — lets stay
  4. toast — bread
  5. mug — a face
  6. leaves — of a tree
  7. bulb — of a plant
  8. leaves — to go away
  9. bulb — for light
  10. mug — a cup
  11. pitch — a sports field
  12. mug — to rob
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. band — a ring
  15. clip — a video
  16. pitch — a sales talk
  17. clip — to cut
  18. band — a music group
  19. degree — temperature
  20. toast — the most admired
  21. pitch — completely
  22. bulb — for light
  23. toast — a drink to someone
  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