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

Word bank: degree · cue · chair · hide · present · mate

  1. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  8. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  12. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  13. Have you found your soul ________________?
  14. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  15. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. degree — from a university
  5. present — the time now
  6. chair — a leader
  7. cue — for pool
  8. cue — a hint
  9. mate — to breed
  10. degree — an amount
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. cue — a signal
  13. mate — a partner
  14. present — there
  15. hide — animal skin
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. mate — a friend
  18. present — a gift

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