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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 like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  2. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  3. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  4. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  18. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  19. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  20. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  23. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  24. The train ________________ at six o'clock.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to dunk
  2. leaves — of a tree
  3. board — a committee
  4. mate — a friend
  5. kid — child
  6. degree — from a university
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. mate — a partner
  9. object — an aim
  10. degree — an amount
  11. race — humankind
  12. leaves — lets stay
  13. degree — temperature
  14. race — a contest
  15. race — the arms race
  16. dip — to sink
  17. mate — to breed
  18. dip — a sauce
  19. board — a flat piece
  20. object — to protest
  21. kid — to tease
  22. board — to get on
  23. object — a thing
  24. leaves — to go away

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