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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: degree · nail · deal · stock · craft · rush · object · chair

  1. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  2. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  7. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  8. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  12. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  13. That must've been a ________________.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  16. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  17. The ________________ market has crashed.
  18. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  19. The ________________ went through the wall.
  20. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  21. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  24. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.

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

Answer key

  1. object — to protest
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. chair — a leader
  5. degree — temperature
  6. nail — on a finger
  7. craft — a handicraft
  8. craft — a skill
  9. degree — from a university
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. deal — to handle
  12. deal — an agreement
  13. rush — a thrill
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. rush — to hurry
  16. rush — hurry
  17. stock — shares
  18. craft — boats
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. deal — a big deal
  21. object — an aim
  22. degree — an amount
  23. object — a thing
  24. stock — goods

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