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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 116 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 · stock · spell · mug · chair · pit

  1. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  2. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  3. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. The ________________ market has crashed.
  6. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  7. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  10. Where did you ________________ them?
  11. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  12. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. How do you ________________ your surname?
  15. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  18. 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. pit — a hole
  2. stock — a soup base
  3. mug — a cup
  4. chair — a leader
  5. stock — shares
  6. spell — magic
  7. stock — goods
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. pit — a fruit stone
  10. mug — to rob
  11. pit — in a race
  12. chair — a professorship
  13. degree — temperature
  14. spell — letters
  15. spell — a short time
  16. degree — from a university
  17. mug — a face
  18. 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