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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 116 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. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  6. What do you think of the new ________________?
  7. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  16. I've got to change the light ________________.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  19. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  20. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  21. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  22. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  23. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  24. The light ________________ burned out.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. march — the month
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. patient — calm and waiting
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. march — music
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. march — the month
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. chair — a leader
  14. wind — moving air
  15. root — of a plant
  16. bulb — for light
  17. wind — moving air
  18. cabinet — a cupboard
  19. bulb — of a plant
  20. chair — to sit on
  21. root — of a word
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. root — the cause
  24. bulb — for light

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