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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. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. The tickets are free of ________________.
  6. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  9. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  10. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  13. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  18. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  19. Have you found your soul ________________?
  20. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  21. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  24. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.

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

Answer key

  1. ruler — a monarch
  2. chair — a leader
  3. foot — a measure
  4. degree — an amount
  5. charge — a price
  6. mate — to breed
  7. mate — a friend
  8. charge — electricity
  9. chair — to sit on
  10. pitch — a sports field
  11. drill — army training
  12. charge — in control
  13. ruler — for measuring
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. drill — a practice
  16. degree — temperature
  17. foot — part of the body
  18. foot — the bottom
  19. mate — a partner
  20. pitch — a sales talk
  21. pitch — completely
  22. degree — from a university
  23. ruler — for measuring
  24. drill — the tool

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