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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. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  4. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  7. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  8. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. Did you ________________ the meat?
  12. He works in a ________________ mill.
  13. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  14. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  15. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  16. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  17. She's very handy with a ________________.
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  19. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  24. I play ________________ in a jazz band.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. degree — from a university
  3. dip — to dunk
  4. dip — to sink
  5. degree — temperature
  6. season — in sport
  7. pass — to succeed
  8. dip — a sauce
  9. rest — what's left
  10. degree — an amount
  11. season — to add flavour
  12. saw — the tool
  13. rest — a break
  14. bass — the fish
  15. saw — past of 'see'
  16. rest — what's left
  17. saw — the tool
  18. bass — low music
  19. pass — to spend time
  20. last — to go on
  21. last — final
  22. season — of the year
  23. pass — a permit
  24. bass — the instrument

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