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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 116 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. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  3. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  4. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  5. This piece is in a major ________________.
  6. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  7. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  8. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  9. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  12. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  21. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  22. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  23. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  24. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. wave — with your hand
  3. key — the most important part
  4. fork — to eat with
  5. key — in music
  6. bass — low music
  7. fork — in a road
  8. leaves — of a tree
  9. key — for a lock
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. bass — the fish
  12. fork — a garden tool
  13. capital — a city
  14. leaves — lets stay
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. file — a tool
  17. capital — money
  18. file — a document
  19. file — a line of people
  20. bass — the instrument
  21. leaves — to go away
  22. wave — of the sea
  23. wave — a sudden rise
  24. chair — to sit on

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