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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. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. When will it ________________ you to start?
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  8. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  9. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. That must've been a ________________.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  20. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  23. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  24. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. cell — a phone
  3. leaves — lets stay
  4. land — to come down
  5. suit — to fit
  6. land — ground
  7. cue — a hint
  8. cue — for pool
  9. leaves — to go away
  10. land — a country
  11. chest — of your body
  12. degree — an amount
  13. chest — of your body
  14. chest — a box
  15. rush — to hurry
  16. degree — temperature
  17. rush — a thrill
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. leaves — of a tree
  20. suit — in cards
  21. cell — in biology
  22. rush — hurry
  23. cue — a signal
  24. suit — clothes

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