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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: chair · season · hide · degree · ball · straw · wake · pitcher

  1. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  12. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  13. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  16. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  20. The King held a masked ________________.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  23. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  24. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — an amount
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. season — of the year
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. ball — a great time
  7. degree — from a university
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. wake — a trail
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. season — in sport
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. ball — a round shape
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. hide — animal skin
  20. ball — a dance
  21. degree — temperature
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. wake — before a funeral
  24. chair — a leader

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