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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. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. What do you think of the new ________________?
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  7. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. Did you ________________ the button?
  10. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  19. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  22. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  23. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  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. cabinet — ministers
  2. season — of the year
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. season — in sport
  7. press — a publisher
  8. shower — to wash
  9. press — to push
  10. cabinet — a cupboard
  11. degree — an amount
  12. chip — in a computer
  13. degree — from a university
  14. cold — an illness
  15. cold — not warm
  16. press — newspapers
  17. shower — rain
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. chip — for betting
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. chip — to eat
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. calf — of the leg
  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