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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: land · chest · suit · date · ball · degree · shower · chair

  1. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  2. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  13. When will it ________________ you to start?
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. Have you settled on a ________________?
  17. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  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. ball — a round shape
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. degree — from a university
  5. degree — an amount
  6. land — a country
  7. land — to come down
  8. shower — rain
  9. chair — to sit on
  10. ball — a dance
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. chest — a box
  13. suit — to fit
  14. degree — temperature
  15. chest — of your body
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. ball — a great time
  18. chest — of your body
  19. date — the fruit
  20. shower — to wash
  21. suit — in cards
  22. land — ground
  23. suit — clothes
  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