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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.

Make a worksheet

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 would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  15. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  18. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  19. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  20. This piece is in a major ________________.
  21. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  22. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  23. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  24. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — a drink to someone
  2. land — to come down
  3. lean — to rest against
  4. land — ground
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. toast — bread
  8. shower — to wash
  9. squash — the sport
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. lean — thin
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. land — a country
  14. squash — to crush
  15. key — the most important part
  16. shower — rain
  17. lean — to bend
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. chair — a leader
  20. key — in music
  21. key — for a lock
  22. toast — the most admired
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. squash — the vegetable

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