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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 120 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: mate · stick · degree · cue · press · spell · rash · chair

  1. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  10. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  11. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  12. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  16. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  17. Did you ________________ the button?
  18. Have you found your soul ________________?
  19. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  20. Don't do anything ________________.
  21. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  22. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. mate — a friend
  3. press — newspapers
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. spell — letters
  7. rash — a series
  8. degree — from a university
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. cue — for pool
  11. stick — to attach or keep to
  12. cue — a signal
  13. chair — a leader
  14. degree — an amount
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. spell — a short time
  17. press — to push
  18. mate — a partner
  19. press — a publisher
  20. rash — hasty
  21. mate — to breed
  22. cue — a hint
  23. spell — magic
  24. degree — temperature

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