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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. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  2. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  8. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  9. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  16. We're on a ________________ here.
  17. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  22. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a list
  2. staff — employees
  3. net — for catching
  4. net — after costs
  5. roll — a cake
  6. net — in sport
  7. row — to paddle
  8. present — the time now
  9. trunk — of a tree
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. staff — a stick
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. row — a line
  15. chair — a leader
  16. roll — on a roll
  17. present — a gift
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. present — there
  20. degree — temperature
  21. staff — employees
  22. chair — to sit on
  23. degree — from a university
  24. degree — an amount

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