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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  3. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  8. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. Don't do anything ________________.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. rock — music
  3. rock — to move gently
  4. cell — a phone
  5. leaves — of a tree
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. leaves — to go away
  8. rock — a stone
  9. rash — a series
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. cell — in biology
  12. rash — hasty
  13. band — a ring
  14. leaves — lets stay
  15. band — a music group
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. chair — a leader

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