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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. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  7. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  8. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  9. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. That was ________________ to happen.
  12. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  13. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  14. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  15. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  16. What do you think of the new ________________?
  17. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  18. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  19. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  20. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. Where did you ________________ them?
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a cup
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. degree — an amount
  4. degree — from a university
  5. bound — tied together
  6. wave — of the sea
  7. pitch — a sales talk
  8. wave — a sudden rise
  9. bound — obliged
  10. chair — a leader
  11. bound — certain
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. squash — the vegetable
  14. mug — a face
  15. pitch — a sports field
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. pitch — completely
  18. wave — with your hand
  19. cabinet — a cupboard
  20. squash — the sport
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. squash — to crush
  23. mug — to rob
  24. degree — temperature

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