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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 116 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. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  8. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  9. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  10. What do you think of the new ________________?
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  13. It's one o'clock ________________.
  14. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  15. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  16. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  24. This knife is not ________________ enough.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. chair — to sit on
  3. degree — from a university
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. staff — employees
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. leaves — lets stay
  8. rest — what's left
  9. rest — what's left
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. chair — a leader
  12. staff — employees
  13. sharp — exactly
  14. leaves — of a tree
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. rest — a break
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. cabinet — a cupboard
  19. degree — temperature
  20. staff — a stick
  21. sharp — clever
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. leaves — to go away
  24. sharp — with an edge

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