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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. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  2. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  8. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  9. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  10. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. It's one o'clock ________________.
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  18. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  19. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  23. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — decided
  2. deal — an agreement
  3. shower — to wash
  4. sharp — clever
  5. march — the month
  6. shower — rain
  7. firm — steady
  8. firm — a company
  9. sharp — with an edge
  10. mark — to pay attention
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. mark — a grade
  13. cell — a phone
  14. sharp — exactly
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. deal — a big deal
  18. deal — to handle
  19. chair — a professorship
  20. march — the month
  21. march — music
  22. chair — a leader
  23. mark — a trace
  24. cell — in biology

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