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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: degree · foot · patient · chair · cue · present

  1. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  2. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  3. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  7. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  8. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  9. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  10. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  17. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — a measure
  2. cue — for pool
  3. foot — the bottom
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. degree — from a university
  6. patient — calm and waiting
  7. present — there
  8. cue — a hint
  9. foot — part of the body
  10. present — a gift
  11. chair — a leader
  12. degree — an amount
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. degree — temperature
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. cue — a signal
  18. present — the time now

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