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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. The King held a masked ________________.
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. This piece is in a major ________________.
  4. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  5. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  6. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  7. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  8. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  9. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  12. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  15. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  16. Did you ________________ the button?
  17. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  20. It's one o'clock ________________.
  21. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  22. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a dance
  2. rash — hasty
  3. key — in music
  4. rock — music
  5. press — a publisher
  6. rash — on the skin
  7. sharp — clever
  8. jam — to spread on bread
  9. rock — a stone
  10. degree — temperature
  11. jam — in traffic
  12. sharp — with an edge
  13. rash — a series
  14. ball — a round shape
  15. key — for a lock
  16. press — to push
  17. key — the most important part
  18. press — newspapers
  19. rock — to move gently
  20. sharp — exactly
  21. jam — a tight spot
  22. ball — a great time
  23. degree — from a university
  24. degree — an amount

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