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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
468
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: fine · fan · staff · degree · pit · ground · present · cell

  1. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  5. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  6. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  7. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  10. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  13. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  14. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  15. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  16. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  17. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  18. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. staff — employees
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. staff — employees
  5. present — there
  6. staff — a stick
  7. fine — all right
  8. ground — the earth
  9. fan — to cool the air
  10. pit — in a race
  11. ground — a position
  12. present — the time now
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. pit — a hole
  15. fine — a penalty
  16. present — a gift
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. fine — high quality
  19. cell — in biology
  20. degree — temperature
  21. cell — a phone
  22. pit — a fruit stone
  23. degree — an amount
  24. degree — from a university

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