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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. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  10. The tickets are free of ________________.
  11. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  14. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  22. I can't ________________ this cold.
  23. Have you found your soul ________________?
  24. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — to breed
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. degree — from a university
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. staff — a stick
  6. game — a match
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. game — wild animals
  9. stand — for spectators
  10. charge — a price
  11. staff — employees
  12. degree — temperature
  13. drill — a practice
  14. charge — electricity
  15. drill — army training
  16. charge — in control
  17. mate — a friend
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. degree — an amount
  20. drill — the tool
  21. staff — employees
  22. stand — to bear
  23. mate — a partner
  24. stand — on your feet

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