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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 put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  3. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  4. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  11. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  12. Did you ________________ the meat?
  13. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  14. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  15. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  16. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  17. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  20. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  21. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  24. The polar ice ________________ is melting.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. object — an aim
  3. pound — a weight
  4. object — to protest
  5. chair — a leader
  6. spring — a coil
  7. fall — to drop
  8. pound — to hit hard
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. fall — to drop
  11. ruler — a monarch
  12. season — to add flavour
  13. object — a thing
  14. season — in sport
  15. cap — a hat
  16. fall — the season
  17. ruler — for measuring
  18. spring — of water
  19. cap — a lid
  20. ruler — for measuring
  21. season — of the year
  22. spring — the season
  23. pound — for dogs
  24. cap — of ice

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