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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. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  3. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  4. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  7. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  10. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  17. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. The King held a masked ________________.
  21. Did you ________________ the meat?
  22. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  23. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  24. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. bank — for money
  3. season — of the year
  4. bank — for money
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. season — in sport
  7. root — of a plant
  8. degree — an amount
  9. fine — a penalty
  10. root — the cause
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. root — of a word
  13. cell — in biology
  14. fine — all right
  15. degree — temperature
  16. ball — a great time
  17. chair — a leader
  18. cell — a phone
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. ball — a dance
  21. season — to add flavour
  22. fine — high quality
  23. ball — a round shape
  24. bank — of a river

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