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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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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: toast · mine · stem · face · race · chair · charge · degree

  1. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. The tickets are free of ________________.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  17. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  21. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. She had a strange look on her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — in control
  2. race — humankind
  3. race — a contest
  4. charge — a price
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. degree — from a university
  7. degree — an amount
  8. chair — a leader
  9. face — to confront
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. toast — bread
  12. degree — temperature
  13. toast — a drink to someone
  14. mine — for digging
  15. race — the arms race
  16. charge — electricity
  17. stem — a stem cell
  18. stem — to come from
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. face — to point toward
  21. toast — the most admired
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. face — part of the head

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