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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. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  3. Did you ________________ the button?
  4. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  5. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. My mare is ________________ in color.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  13. We're on a ________________ here.
  14. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  15. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  23. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  24. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. patient — calm and waiting
  3. press — to push
  4. bank — for money
  5. roll — a list
  6. degree — temperature
  7. spring — the season
  8. bay — a horse colour
  9. degree — from a university
  10. bank — for money
  11. land — a country
  12. roll — a cake
  13. roll — on a roll
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. bay — a part of the sea
  16. spring — a coil
  17. land — to come down
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. land — ground
  20. bank — of a river
  21. spring — of water
  22. press — a publisher
  23. bay — to keep at bay
  24. press — newspapers

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