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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 old man leaned on his ________________.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  4. I'll be taking the ________________.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  7. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  8. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  9. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  10. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  11. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  14. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  15. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  16. We're almost out of ________________.
  17. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  18. You don't need to ________________ round.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  21. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. Have you met the new head ________________?
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. staff — a stick
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. track — a song
  4. tube — the underground
  5. degree — an amount
  6. staff — employees
  7. pop — music
  8. deal — to handle
  9. staff — employees
  10. season — of the year
  11. tube — in a tire
  12. degree — temperature
  13. tube — a container
  14. track — a path
  15. deal — a big deal
  16. pop — soda
  17. track — to keep track
  18. pop — to visit
  19. degree — from a university
  20. deal — an agreement
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. season — in sport
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. season — to add flavour

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