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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.

Make a worksheet

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. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  5. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  6. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  7. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. That must've been a ________________.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  15. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. bowl — a football final
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. craft — a skill
  5. bowl — a dish
  6. rush — to hurry
  7. craft — a handicraft
  8. bat — the animal
  9. rush — a thrill
  10. wind — moving air
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. rush — hurry
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. bowl — to roll
  15. craft — boats
  16. wind — moving air
  17. chair — a professorship
  18. bat — for baseball

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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