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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. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  2. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  5. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  9. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  10. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  11. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  12. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  13. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  14. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  15. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  18. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  19. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  20. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. jam — to spread on bread
  2. present — the time now
  3. degree — from a university
  4. squash — the sport
  5. pitch — a sales talk
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. degree — temperature
  8. squash — the vegetable
  9. pitch — completely
  10. foot — part of the body
  11. foot — the bottom
  12. pitch — a sports field
  13. foot — a measure
  14. present — there
  15. board — a committee
  16. degree — an amount
  17. present — a gift
  18. jam — in traffic
  19. board — a flat piece
  20. jam — a tight spot
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. squash — to crush
  23. board — to get on
  24. straw — dry grass

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