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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. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  8. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  9. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  10. This piece is in a major ________________.
  11. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  12. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  13. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  14. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  17. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  18. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  19. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. That was ________________ to happen.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. chip — to eat
  4. chair — a leader
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. degree — an amount
  7. bound — obliged
  8. key — for a lock
  9. cue — for pool
  10. key — in music
  11. cue — a signal
  12. chip — in a computer
  13. toast — the most admired
  14. chip — for betting
  15. field — farmland
  16. toast — bread
  17. cue — a hint
  18. key — the most important part
  19. bound — tied together
  20. field — for sport
  21. bound — certain
  22. field — a subject
  23. degree — temperature
  24. toast — a drink to someone

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