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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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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: chair · firm · rule · fine · pitch · hand · band · degree

  1. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  2. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  7. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  10. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  14. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  15. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  19. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  20. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  21. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — a company
  2. firm — decided
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. fine — a penalty
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. fine — all right
  7. rule — government
  8. band — a music group
  9. fine — high quality
  10. firm — steady
  11. hand — help
  12. hand — in cards
  13. rule — to rule out
  14. rule — a law
  15. pitch — a sports field
  16. degree — from a university
  17. degree — an amount
  18. chair — to sit on
  19. pitch — a sales talk
  20. chair — a professorship
  21. pitch — completely
  22. degree — temperature
  23. chair — a leader
  24. band — a ring

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