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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. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  4. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  7. That must've been a ________________.
  8. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  11. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  12. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  15. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. This piece is in a major ________________.
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  21. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  22. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. degree — from a university
  2. rush — hurry
  3. chip — to eat
  4. cue — a hint
  5. degree — temperature
  6. staff — employees
  7. rush — a thrill
  8. rush — to hurry
  9. march — music
  10. key — for a lock
  11. chip — in a computer
  12. staff — employees
  13. march — the month
  14. staff — a stick
  15. cue — for pool
  16. march — the month
  17. key — in music
  18. last — to go on
  19. degree — an amount
  20. chip — for betting
  21. key — the most important part
  22. cue — a signal
  23. last — finally
  24. last — final

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