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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. We're on a ________________ here.
  2. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  7. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  10. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  11. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  12. Have you settled on a ________________?
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  17. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  18. It's one o'clock ________________.
  19. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  23. David sat on the ________________.
  24. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — on a roll
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. roll — a cake
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. chip — in a computer
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. sharp — with an edge
  10. date — the fruit
  11. roll — a list
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. capital — a city
  14. swing — music
  15. bat — the animal
  16. chip — to eat
  17. chip — for betting
  18. sharp — exactly
  19. chair — a leader
  20. capital — money
  21. sharp — clever
  22. chair — to sit on
  23. swing — to play on
  24. swing — in golf

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