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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 116 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. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  6. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  9. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. The King held a masked ________________.
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. This piece is in a major ________________.
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. My mare is ________________ in color.
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. degree — an amount
  3. board — a committee
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. bay — a part of the sea
  6. board — to get on
  7. net — for catching
  8. ball — a round shape
  9. key — the most important part
  10. spell — letters
  11. ball — a dance
  12. degree — from a university
  13. board — a flat piece
  14. spell — magic
  15. bay — to keep at bay
  16. net — after costs
  17. snap — to click
  18. key — in music
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. degree — temperature
  21. key — for a lock
  22. net — in sport
  23. bay — a horse colour
  24. spell — a short time

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