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

  1. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  2. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  7. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  11. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  12. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the sport
  2. fork — to eat with
  3. chair — a leader
  4. rest — what's left
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. squash — to crush
  7. snap — to click
  8. band — a ring
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. fork — a garden tool
  11. rest — a break
  12. rest — what's left
  13. band — a music group
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. fork — in a road
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. chair — a professorship
  18. snap — to speak sharply

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