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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: mark · degree · mug · last · tube · race · cabinet · chair

  1. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  5. What do you think of the new ________________?
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  8. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  9. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  14. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  15. I'll be taking the ________________.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  18. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. Where did you ________________ them?
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. degree — from a university
  3. last — to go on
  4. mark — a trace
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. degree — an amount
  7. mug — a cup
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. tube — in a tire
  10. chair — a leader
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. race — humankind
  13. cabinet — a cupboard
  14. tube — a container
  15. tube — the underground
  16. last — final
  17. chair — a professorship
  18. mark — a grade
  19. degree — temperature
  20. mug — to rob
  21. race — the arms race
  22. mark — to pay attention
  23. last — finally
  24. mug — a face

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