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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. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  3. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. You don't need to ________________ round.
  9. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  10. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  13. We're almost out of ________________.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  16. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  21. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. bank — for money
  3. fan — to cool the air
  4. degree — temperature
  5. degree — from a university
  6. leaves — of a tree
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. pop — to visit
  9. bank — for money
  10. leaves — to go away
  11. spell — letters
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. pop — soda
  14. degree — an amount
  15. sharp — clever
  16. leaves — lets stay
  17. spell — a short time
  18. bank — of a river
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. pop — music
  22. season — of the year
  23. spell — magic
  24. season — to add flavour

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