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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. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  10. Did you ________________ the meat?
  11. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  12. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  13. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  14. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. I can't ________________ this cold.
  17. That was ________________ to happen.
  18. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — bread
  2. court — for sport
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. chair — a leader
  5. bound — tied together
  6. kick — in football
  7. land — to come down
  8. season — of the year
  9. toast — the most admired
  10. season — to add flavour
  11. kick — with a leg
  12. kick — a thrill
  13. stand — on your feet
  14. toast — a drink to someone
  15. court — of a king
  16. stand — to bear
  17. bound — certain
  18. bound — obliged
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. court — of law
  21. land — a country
  22. season — in sport
  23. stand — for spectators
  24. land — ground

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