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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 120 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 kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  6. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  7. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  8. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  9. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  12. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  13. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  14. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  17. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  18. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  19. Did you ________________ the meat?
  20. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  21. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  22. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — for weighing
  2. court — for sport
  3. court — of law
  4. chair — a leader
  5. face — to point toward
  6. squash — the vegetable
  7. squash — to crush
  8. board — to get on
  9. season — of the year
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. bore — to tire
  12. scale — in music
  13. board — a committee
  14. board — a flat piece
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. face — part of the head
  17. season — in sport
  18. bore — to drill
  19. season — to add flavour
  20. bore — gave birth
  21. squash — the sport
  22. face — to confront
  23. court — of a king
  24. scale — size or range

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