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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. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  2. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  3. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  4. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  7. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  14. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  15. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  20. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — on the skin
  2. rash — a series
  3. foot — a measure
  4. hide — animal skin
  5. degree — from a university
  6. firm — decided
  7. firm — steady
  8. tear — from crying
  9. tear — from crying
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. rash — hasty
  12. band — a ring
  13. foot — the bottom
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. chair — a professorship
  16. degree — temperature
  17. chair — a leader
  18. band — a music group
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. foot — part of the body
  21. tear — to rip
  22. chair — to sit on
  23. degree — an amount
  24. firm — a company

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