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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. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  2. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  5. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  6. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  7. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  16. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  19. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  22. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — the most admired
  2. dip — to dunk
  3. degree — an amount
  4. pass — to spend time
  5. pass — a permit
  6. toast — a drink to someone
  7. branch — a division
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. degree — temperature
  10. dip — to sink
  11. cold — not warm
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. land — ground
  14. land — to come down
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. degree — from a university
  18. dip — a sauce
  19. toast — bread
  20. land — a country
  21. pass — to succeed
  22. branch — of a bank
  23. cold — an illness
  24. hide — animal skin

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