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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. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  4. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  5. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  6. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  7. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  8. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  9. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. Have you settled on a ________________?
  12. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  17. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. My father caught me by the ________________.
  20. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. Don't do anything ________________.
  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. chair — a leader
  2. band — a music group
  3. trunk — of an elephant
  4. rash — on the skin
  5. bass — the fish
  6. trunk — of a car
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. chair — to sit on
  10. band — a ring
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. bass — the instrument
  13. net — in sport
  14. arm — a part of something
  15. net — for catching
  16. date — the fruit
  17. chair — a professorship
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. bass — low music
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. rash — a series
  23. rash — hasty
  24. net — after costs

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