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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. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  6. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  7. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  14. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  15. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  20. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  23. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. jam — to spread on bread
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. drill — a practice
  4. cell — a phone
  5. jam — in traffic
  6. mark — a trace
  7. present — a gift
  8. game — wild animals
  9. drill — army training
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. drill — the tool
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. mark — a grade
  14. present — the time now
  15. jam — a tight spot
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. mark — to pay attention
  18. game — a match
  19. snap — to speak sharply
  20. chair — a leader
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. snap — to click
  23. present — there
  24. cell — in biology

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