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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 116 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: mug · track · tear · chair · degree · kid · game · staff

  1. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  12. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  18. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  19. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. Where did you ________________ them?
  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. staff — a stick
  2. tear — to rip
  3. chair — a leader
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. staff — employees
  6. kid — to tease
  7. game — wild animals
  8. track — to keep track
  9. tear — from crying
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. mug — a face
  12. track — a song
  13. tear — from crying
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. kid — child
  16. game — a match
  17. chair — a professorship
  18. mug — a cup
  19. track — a path
  20. degree — from a university
  21. staff — employees
  22. degree — an amount
  23. mug — to rob
  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