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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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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: vault · firm · press · land · cold · degree · mark · bay

  1. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  6. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  7. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  10. My mare is ________________ in color.
  11. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  12. Did you ________________ the button?
  13. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  14. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  17. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  22. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  23. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. land — a country
  3. land — to come down
  4. land — ground
  5. vault — an arched ceiling
  6. press — newspapers
  7. firm — a company
  8. cold — an illness
  9. bay — a part of the sea
  10. bay — a horse colour
  11. vault — a safe
  12. press — to push
  13. mark — to pay attention
  14. bay — to keep at bay
  15. cold — not warm
  16. firm — steady
  17. press — a publisher
  18. degree — temperature
  19. mark — a trace
  20. degree — from a university
  21. vault — in gymnastics
  22. mark — a grade
  23. firm — decided
  24. degree — an amount

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