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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 120 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. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  3. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  4. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  5. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  6. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  7. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  11. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  12. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  13. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  14. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  17. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  18. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  19. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  22. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  23. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. pit — in a race
  3. staff — employees
  4. leaves — lets stay
  5. staff — employees
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. patient — calm and waiting
  8. degree — an amount
  9. cold — an illness
  10. pitch — a sales talk
  11. craft — a skill
  12. leaves — to go away
  13. pitch — completely
  14. leaves — of a tree
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. pit — a hole
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. pitch — a sports field
  19. staff — a stick
  20. cold — not warm
  21. pit — a fruit stone
  22. craft — a handicraft
  23. craft — boats
  24. degree — temperature

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