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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 · cap · chair · temple · pop · shower · bay

  1. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  2. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. My mare is ________________ in color.
  8. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  11. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  14. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  15. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  16. You don't need to ________________ round.
  17. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  20. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. When was this ________________ built?
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. We're almost out of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — to keep at bay
  2. pop — music
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. chair — a leader
  5. degree — an amount
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. bay — a horse colour
  8. cap — a lid
  9. degree — temperature
  10. cap — a hat
  11. cue — a signal
  12. shower — to wash
  13. cue — a hint
  14. bay — a part of the sea
  15. temple — side of the head
  16. pop — to visit
  17. temple — a place of worship
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. cue — for pool
  20. cap — of ice
  21. degree — from a university
  22. temple — a place of worship
  23. shower — rain
  24. pop — soda

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