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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. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  3. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. David sat on the ________________.
  6. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  11. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  17. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  18. Have you settled on a ________________?
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  21. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  22. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  23. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. spell — a short time
  3. fall — to drop
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. swing — to play on
  6. dip — to dunk
  7. chair — a leader
  8. swing — in golf
  9. net — for catching
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. dip — to sink
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. lean — to bend
  14. swing — music
  15. spell — letters
  16. date — the fruit
  17. fall — the season
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. fall — to drop
  21. lean — thin
  22. spell — magic
  23. dip — a sauce
  24. net — after costs

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